SBNation.com User Blog: TruthTelling

New Page Design

TruthTelling — Wed, 26 Sep 2012 17:10:43 -0000

Good Lord who comitted this crime? Turned Bsots into an eye sore. The page is near impossible to navigate and there is purple EVERYWHERE.

Even worse since the Suns are moving away from the purple color schemes and introduced orange as their main color more than ever..

Please undo these design changes it is honestly disgusting.

On the mainpage the header almost takes up the entire screen despite high resolution, have to scroll down to find actual content.

Good Lord who comitted this crime? Turned Bsots into an eye sore. The page is near impossible to navigate and there is purple EVERYWHERE.

Even worse since the Suns are moving away from the purple color schemes and introduced orange as their main color more than ever..

Please undo these design changes it is honestly disgusting.

On the mainpage the header almost takes up the entire screen despite high resolution, have to scroll down to find actual content.

Athletic testing results

TruthTelling — Tue, 12 Jun 2012 18:13:58 -0000

Ok guys finally they are here:

Jared Sullinger was worst in agility and sprint, 6th worst in vertical and worst big man in bench press. Quincy Miller did just 1 repetition less and Perry Jones III did more.

Drummond also did less than Jones III and his vertical was measured at just 33.5".

Austin Rivers had basically the same testing results as Terrence Ross.

Harrison Barnes did very well. Among the fastest end to end and best leapers.

Perry Jones III also did very well as did Quincy Miller.

Some quick notables

http://www.draftexpress.com/nba-pre-draft-measurements/?year=2012&sort2=DESC&draft=0&pos=0&source=NBA%20Draft%20Combine&sort=1

Rivers
11.54 agility
3.32 sprint
1 bench
37.5 vert

Ross
11.78 agility
3.28 sprint
2 bench
37.5 vert

Beal

10.95 agility
3.28 sprint
8 bench
39 vert

Barnes
10.93 agility
3.16 sprint
15 bench
39.5 vert

Lamb
10.98agility
3.25 sprint
5 bench
38 vert

Harkless
10.87agility
3.25 sprint
5 bench
37 vert

Quincy Miller
11.05 agility
3.48 sprint
8 bench
36 vert

MKG
11.77 agility
3.18 sprint
6 bench
35.5 vert

Marshall
12.03 agility
3.23 sprint
N/A bench
37 vert

Lillard
11.15 agility
3.34 sprint
13 bench
39.5 vert

Better than expected : Marshall, Barnes, Beal

Worse than expected: MKG, Ross, Harkless

Ok guys finally they are here:

Jared Sullinger was worst in agility and sprint, 6th worst in vertical and worst big man in bench press. Quincy Miller did just 1 repetition less and Perry Jones III did more.

Drummond also did less than Jones III and his vertical was measured at just 33.5".

Austin Rivers had basically the same testing results as Terrence Ross.

Harrison Barnes did very well. Among the fastest end to end and best leapers.

Perry Jones III also did very well as did Quincy Miller.

Some quick notables

http://www.draftexpress.com/nba-pre-draft-measurements/?year=2012&sort2=DESC&draft=0&pos=0&source=NBA%20Draft%20Combine&sort=1

Rivers
11.54 agility
3.32 sprint
1 bench
37.5 vert

Ross
11.78 agility
3.28 sprint
2 bench
37.5 vert

Beal

10.95 agility
3.28 sprint
8 bench
39 vert

Barnes
10.93 agility
3.16 sprint
15 bench
39.5 vert

Lamb
10.98agility
3.25 sprint
5 bench
38 vert

Harkless
10.87agility
3.25 sprint
5 bench
37 vert

Quincy Miller
11.05 agility
3.48 sprint
8 bench
36 vert

MKG
11.77 agility
3.18 sprint
6 bench
35.5 vert

Marshall
12.03 agility
3.23 sprint
N/A bench
37 vert

Lillard
11.15 agility
3.34 sprint
13 bench
39.5 vert

Better than expected : Marshall, Barnes, Beal

Worse than expected: MKG, Ross, Harkless

Lack of Draft Coverage

TruthTelling — Tue, 12 Jun 2012 09:47:02 -0000

Just a little over 2 weeks to go and once again we have not seen any official Suns draft coverage on suns.com .

Maybe this franchise should first learn to respect their fans again before they ask for patience to stick with the team. When we drafted Amare and Barbosa we got daily workout updates and videos and interviews with the players. Now we get nada in the last 8 years.

Reading suns articles by Paul Coro is a time waste too. There are maybe 2 or 3 articles per year that are worth reading. Either he has no passion for the team anymore or they don't give him much information anymore.

/rant off

Just a little over 2 weeks to go and once again we have not seen any official Suns draft coverage on suns.com .

/rant off

Andre Drummond - Physical Beast

TruthTelling — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 20:09:41 -0000

Let me say this. I had this guy on the radar since 3 years almost as a lock for the #1 pick whenever he would declare. I was in love with him coming out of highschool. An incredibly talented prospect I thought was combining some of the best traits of Amare Stoudemire's aggressive play, Dwight Howards body and Chris Webbers skills.

Then he played at UCONN. The Huskies had a bad season and lots of offcourt stuff happening with Calhoun etc. Drummond was not playing up to expectations at all and shot a disastrous 30 something % from the freethrow line.

A month ago I was not even sure anymore that he is worth a top 10 pick and closer to a DeAndre Jordan/ Kwame Brown hybrid instead of Amare/Howard/Webber.

But then comes todays news and I remembered why this guy is worth any risk involved in picking him and of all Huskies he might be the smartest. Character issues is something he does not really have except some people claiming he is not serious enough.

(Jeremy Lamb might be the dumbest player in the entire draft)

Anyway back to the news of today that reminded me that the Suns have to explore ANY possibility available to trade up for Andre Drummond

Andre Drummond was labeled the 'physical beast' of the 2012 NBA Draft by Sam Amick of Sports Illustrated.

Drummond is "278 pounds with 7.5 percent body fat. He said his vertical leap today was 38 inches. He was disappointed - said he's hit 40 before. He measured 6-9 3/4 w/out shoes, 6-11 3/4 w/ shoes, with a 7-6 1/4 wingspan," wrote Amick.

Drummond told Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports that he would love a one-on-one workout for the Hornets against Anthony Davis.

"I don't think we can get it done," said Drummond. "I'd love for it to happen."

Yes, those measurements make Dwight Howard jealous and the though that he might possibly be able to play PF too is incredible.

Imagine a frontcrout of

Gortat/Lopez/Drummond/Frye

or if the Suns signed Brook Lopez and used Gortat in a trade for Drummond a combo of the Lopez twins with Frye and Drummond.

The Suns would have 4 7 footers in the frontcourt basically if you are generous and count Frye who is around 6'11 I guess close to 7'. Now if the Suns added the almost 7' Perry Jones who sees himself as a SF. Well the Suns surely would never be considered undersized anymore.

Let me throw in my favorite Andre Drummond mixtape. Maybe it was really just the issues of UCONN, lack of pro coaching and environment and poor team play that held him back in college.

Andre Drummond Official Mixtape Vol. 4 UCONN (via Crusader22Prd)

A month ago I was not even sure anymore that he is worth a top 10 pick and closer to a DeAndre Jordan/ Kwame Brown hybrid instead of Amare/Howard/Webber.

(Jeremy Lamb might be the dumbest player in the entire draft)

Anyway back to the news of today that reminded me that the Suns have to explore ANY possibility available to trade up for Andre Drummond

Andre Drummond was labeled the 'physical beast' of the 2012 NBA Draft by Sam Amick of Sports Illustrated.

Drummond is "278 pounds with 7.5 percent body fat. He said his vertical leap today was 38 inches. He was disappointed - said he's hit 40 before. He measured 6-9 3/4 w/out shoes, 6-11 3/4 w/ shoes, with a 7-6 1/4 wingspan," wrote Amick.

Drummond told Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports that he would love a one-on-one workout for the Hornets against Anthony Davis.

"I don't think we can get it done," said Drummond. "I'd love for it to happen."

Yes, those measurements make Dwight Howard jealous and the though that he might possibly be able to play PF too is incredible.

Imagine a frontcrout of

Gortat/Lopez/Drummond/Frye

or if the Suns signed Brook Lopez and used Gortat in a trade for Drummond a combo of the Lopez twins with Frye and Drummond.

Let me throw in my favorite Andre Drummond mixtape. Maybe it was really just the issues of UCONN, lack of pro coaching and environment and poor team play that held him back in college.

Andre Drummond Official Mixtape Vol. 4 UCONN (via Crusader22Prd)

Early Bird Mock Draft 1.0

TruthTelling — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 10:07:28 -0000

With March Madness coming to an end this weekend I decided to take a first look at how the draft could shake out in my opinion.

It is almost certain that some relatively unknown foreign players will get in the picture before the draft and some talented underachievers like Andre Drummond are probably going to go back to school when they see their actual projected draft position. Patric Young and Andre Drummond are two of the most likely I think.

1. Charlotte Bobcats

Biggest Needs: SF/SG

Anthony Davis 6'10/6'11 PF Kentucky

NBA comparison: Camby-Marion-Duncan-Garnett hybrid - Really he needs no comparison

3 standout performances:

27 points 14 rebounds 7 blocks vs Arkansas

28 Points 11 rebounds 5 blocks 2 steals vs Vanderbilt

15 points 15 rebounds 8 blocks 2 steals vs St.John's

They can't pass up Davis although they have 2 similiar players in Tyrus Thomas and Bismack Biyombo. Biyombo might be a bit short for the center position but is long and plenty strong. With DAvis and Biyombo the Bobcats are set up to having the best shotblocking frontcourt in recent league history.

2. New Orleans Hornets

Biggest Needs: SF/PF/C/PG

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist 6'7 SF Kentucky

NBA comparison: Scottie Pippen

3 standout performances:

24 points 19 rebounds 1 assist vs Louisville

24 points 10 rebounds 1 assist vs Indiana @ March Madness

18 points 10 rebounds 1 assist 2 blocks 2 steals vs Mississippi State

Kidd-Gilchrist needs to work on his perimeter game but which 18 year old wing player does not? He combines very good athletic ability and work ethic. He has very high ceiling if he improves his ball handling and jumpshot he can be a franchise player and his attitute makes him the perfect young player to start rebuilding with.

3. Washington Wizards

Biggest Needs: PF/C/SG/SF

Bradley Beal - 6'5 SG Florida

NBA comparison: Eric Gordon/Dwyane Wade

3 standout performances:

20 points 8 rebounds 5 assists 1 steal 1 block vs Kentucky

21 points 6 rebounds 4 assists 2 steals 2 blocks vs Marquette @ March Madness

22 points 10 rebounds 3 assists 3 blocks vs Stetson

They either need a big man to pair with Nene or a wing player to pair with Wall. Washington might listen to trade offers at this position. Maybe they would consider trading the #3 pick along with Andray Blatche for Marcin Gortat, just an idea. Or swap #3 and Blatche for #12 and either Frye or Dudley.

Bradley Beal reminds me of Eric Gordon but he seems to be slightly bigger and much better rebounder and also better passer. I project him to be a better version of Eric Gordon / Mitch Richmond which should be good enough to make a few allstar games.

4. Sacramento Kings

Biggest needs: PG/SF/PF

Thomas Robinson 6'9 PF Kansas

NBA comparison: Antonio McDyess

3 standout performances:

30 points 21 rebounds 4 assists 1 block 2 steals vs North Dakota

25 points 14 rebounds 2 assists 1 steal vs Texas

20 points 17 rebounds 4 assists 2 steals 2 blocks vs Oklahoma

Alternatively they could reach for Harrison Barnes here but I think the best pick for them might be Kendall Marshall but it would take guts to pass on Thomas Robinson who is the best player available. The question is if two gifted offensive players like Robinson and Cousins can co-exist. If they can look out and Thomas Robinson work ethic and character should be a welcome addition to a Kings team with questionable characters like Evans and Cousins.

5. Toronto Raptors

Biggest needs: PG/SF

Kendall Marshall 6'4 PG North Carolina

NBA comparison: Andre Miller

3 standout performances:

22 points 13 assists 2 rebounds 1 steal vs North Carolina State

20 points 10 assists 4 rebounds 1 steal vs Duke

18 points 11 assists 4 rebounds 1 block vs Creighton @ March Madness

If you are left choosing between Marshall and Barnes, I'd take Marshall and I think that is the best impact player they can get to pair with DeRozan, Bargnani and Valanciunas.

Marshall is probably the most undervalued player right now in the draft. In a weak PG class there is no way that a player like Marshall who is projected to be worst case something between Mark Jackson and Andre Miller and has put up historical assist numbers at North Carolina is going to fall out of the top 7. The tournament sealed Marshalls status as best PG in college right now and best true PG to come out of college since probably Jason Kidd. If he Marshall was scoring a little more and overall more athletic he would seriously challenge Anthony Davis.

6. Golden State

(if outside top 7 it goes to Utah) - Biggest needs: SF/C

Harrison Barnes 6'8 SF North Carolina

NBA comparison: poor man's Danny Granger/Jamal Mashburn/Glen Rice

3 standout performances:

26 points 10 rebounds 1 assists 1 block 2 steals vs Texas

24 points 7 rebounds 2 assists 2 steals vs Clemson

27 points 6 rebounds 3 steals 1 block vs Virginia Tech

Golden State could go several directions here. They just acquired Bogut but they could still go for Andre Drummond or Cody Zeller here. I think they will reach for Harrison Barnes. Barnes got exposed in college this year. It would not be shocking to see him drop out of the top 10 because more people realize that in reality he was maybe just the 4th or 5th best player on his own college team and the only skill he has that is above average is a pretty good shooting touch.

7. Portland (via New Jersey)

Biggest needs: PG/SG/C

Austin Rivers - 6'4 SG Duke

NBA comparison: Monta Ellis

3 standout performances:

29 points 5 rebounds 2 assists 1 steal vs North Carolina

18 points 5 rebounds 5 assists 1 steal vs Virginia Tech

23 points 4 rebounds 1 assist 17 FTA vs Virginia Tech

Portland is an interesting case. Assuming they see no need at their forward positions with Batum, Aldridge and Hickson they should be looking to improve their backcourt and center position. They would love to have Kendall Marshall drop to them but that won't happen. Austin Rivers will give them what they hoped to get out of Jamal Crawford.

8. Portland

Biggest needs PG/C

Cody Zeller - 7' F/C Indiana

NBA comparison: Pau Gasol

3 standout performances:

20 points 7 rebounds 2 assists vs Kentucky @ March Madness

16 points 13 rebounds 1 assist 1 block vs Virginia Commonwealth @ March Madness

19 points 10 rebounds 2 assists 1 steal 1 block vs Penn State

After adding youth to their backcourt, Porland is left with a decision on how to improve their center position. The options are the talented Andre Drummond who looks to maybe have the most potential but has given underwhelming production in college, the most ready to play center in Tyler Zeller or the more talented younger brother Cody Zeller. In the end Cody Zeller gives them the best mix of talent and production.

9. Cleveland

Biggest needs SG/SF/C

Tyler Zeller - 7' C North Carolina

NBA comparison: Chris Kaman

3 standout performances:

20 points 22 rebounds 4 blocks vs Ohio @ March Madness

21 points 17 rebounds 1 assist 2 steals 1 block vs North Carolina State

30 points 8 rebounds 3 blocks 2 steals 23 FTA vs Maryland

With Irving and Thompson in place Cleveland could use talent on the wing and center position. The options are between Drummond, Lamb and Tyler Zeller. I believe that Zeller would be the best fit next to Thompson in the frontcourt but they could also decide to pair Lamb with Irving in the backcourt.

10. New Orleans (via Minnesota)

Biggest needs: PF/C/PG

Jared Sullinger - 6'9 PF Ohio State

NBA comparison: Zach Randolph / Al Jefferson

3 standout performances :

22 points 18 rebounds 3 assists 2 blocks vs Northwestern

30 points 12 rebounds 2 assists 3 blocks vs Purdue

23 points 11 rebounds 3 assists 1 steal vs Cincinatti @ March Madness

After fixing the small forward position by drafting Michael Kidd-Gilchrist the Hornets fill out their roster of Jack, Gordon, Gilchrist and Okafor with a talented scorer and post player athe power forward position in Jared Sullinger. Andre Drummond, Perry Jones III, John Henson or Terrence Jones could be options as well, all power forwards.

11. Detroit Pistons

Biggest needs: SG/SF/PF

Jeremy Lamb - 6'5 SG UConn

NBA comparison: Kevin Martin

3 standout performances:

32 points 5 rebounds 2 assists vs Villanova

25 points 5 rebounds 4 assists vs DePaul

25 points 8 rebounds 3 assists vs West Virginia

The Pistons have to make a tough choice between Perry Jones III and Jeremy Lamb. Drummond and Henson would not fit well next to Monroe in my opinion. Jones III might be a perfect match however with his perimeter skills and Monroe could make up for his lack of defense, toughness and rebounding. In the end however I think Detroit would make the safe pick and put Lamb in their backcourt with Knight. Lamb has extremely long arms and would fit in well with Detroit's history of drafting lanky players like Prince and Daye.

12. Phoenix Suns

Biggest needs: SG/SF/PF/PG

Andre Drummond - 6'10/6'11 F/C UConn

NBA comparison: DeAndre Jordan

3 standout performances:

20 points 11 rebounds 2 steals 3 blocks vs West Virginia

17 points 14 rebounds 3 blocks vs Syracuse

14 points 10 rebounds 3 blocks vs Syracuse

A year ago I was convinced Drummond would be a #1 pick in the draft but his production has been underwhelming and inconsistent. The Suns are in a tough spot here because their biggest need is getting a dynamic wing scorer but Beal, Rivers, Lamb, Gilchrist and Barnes are all gone and Terrence Jones is a tweener similiar to Markieff Morris.

So the Suns are stuck chosing between two enigmas Andre Drummond and Perry Jones III. The Suns lucked out on Amare Stoudemire before, a similiar project as Drummond.

13. Milwaukee Bucks

Biggest needs: C/SF

Meyers Leonard - 7' C Illinois

NBA comparison: Chris Kaman

3 standout performances:

22 points 14 rebounds 2 assists 2 blocks vs Iowa

22 points 12 rebounds 2 assists 1 steal 5 blocks vs Richmond

19 points 16 rebounds 2 assists 3 blocks vs Cornell

The Bucks just traded away Andrew Bogut and now have to add size in their fronctourt to cover their tiny backcourt. Alternatively they could take Terrence Jones if they believe he can play small forward in the NBA.

14. Utah Jazz

Biggest needs: PG/SG/SF

Damian Lillard - 6'2 PG Weber State

NBA comparison: Jason Terry

3 standout performances:

41 points 8 rebounds 5 assists 2 steals 1 block vs San Jose State

29 points 10 rebounds 7 assists 1 steal 1 block vs Montana

38 points 5 rebounds 5 assists 1 steal 1 block vs Portland State

Point Guard is the only position the Jazz do not have top young talent. They would love to get the pick from Golden State to draft Kendall Marshall but he will not drop out of the top 7. The alternatives are not really there for the Jazz.

15. Houston (via New York)

Biggest needs: PF/C/SF

John Henson - 6'10 PF North Carolina

NBA comparison: Keon Clark / Andris Biedrins

3 standout performances:

16 points 16 rebounds 6 blocks vs Virginia Tech

14 points 12 rebounds 1 assists 2 steals 4 blocks vs Wake Forest

12 points 17 rebounds 2 assists 1 block vs Duke

I have a hard time letting Terrence Jones drop further but there is no way Houston picks him up after drafting a similiar player in Marcus Morris last year.

Luis Scola is declining fast, they are set in the backcourt and no great small forward or center is available. They could take Perry Jones III here as well.

16. New Jersey (via Houston)

Biggest needs: PF

Terrence Jones 6'9 SF/PF Kentucky

NBA comparison: Paul Milsap / Derrick Williams / Rodney Rogers

3 standout performances:

26 points 9 rebounds 4 steals 4 blocks vs St.John's

27 points 9 rebounds 1 assist 2 steals 3 blocks vs LSU

12 points 9 rebounds 6 assists 2 steals 3 blocks vs Baylor @March Madness

Honestly I see New Jersey trading out at this point. There is no center on the board to move Brook Lopez to the 4. There is no PF on the board that would make sense next to Lopez over Humphries. I mean Jones III next to Brook Lopez screams for disaster. At the 2 they got Brooks and at the 3 Wallace. They showed they don't value their picks when they traded for Wallace. The Suns should inquire about this pick and target Terrence Jones, Perry Jones III, Quincy Miller or Tony Wroten.

17. Denver Nuggets

Biggest needs: BPA

Perry Jones III - 6'11 PF Baylor

NBA comparison: Anthony Randolph / Zarko Cabarkapa

3 standout performances:

31 points 11 rebounds 1 assist 2 blocks vs Kansas State

22 points 13 rebounds 3 assists vs Texas

28 points 8 rebounds 4 assists 3 steals vs BYU

On the one hand Denver can afford to gamble, on the other hand a situation like that on such a deep team might be bad for Jones III. Personally I have not given up on Jones III although it looks more and more likely that he is the next Anthony Randolph. Jones III is destined to potentially drop far in the draft considering like Drummond he was expected to be a top pick a year ago.

Look for Denver to trade this pick, they have so much depth and talent at the moment that they would have trouble fitting this pick in their roster at all. Another pick the Suns should target if they want to acquire some young talent.

18. Philadelphia 76ers

Biggest needs: PF

Arnett Moultrie - 6'11 PF Mississippi State

NBA comparison: Mareese Speights

3 standout performances :

28 points 12 rebounds 1 steal vs LSU

21 points 14 rebounds 4 steals 1 block vs Vanderbilt

28 points 13 rebounds 2 steals vs South Alabama

Replacing Elton Brand will be the biggest task for the 76ers in the near future.

19. Memphis Grizzlies

Biggest needs: SG

Doron Lamb - 6'4 SG Kentucky

NBA comparison : Tony Delk

3 standout performances:

21 points 3 rebounds 2 assists 1 steal vs Indiana @ March Madness

26 points 4 rebounds 2 assists 1 steal vs Penn State

26 points 6 rebounds 1 steal vs Samford

Tony Allen is getting old, OJ Mayo is a restricted free agent and overall the Grizzlies could use someone that can really shoot the ball. Drafting possibly the most dangerous 3 point shooter available seems to be obvious.

20. Atlanta Hawks

Biggest needs: C/SF/PG

Quincy Miller - 6'9 SF Baylor

NBA comparison : Donte Greene

3 standout performances:

20 points 7 rebounds 3 steals vs Missouri

17 points 11 rebounds 6 assists 1 steal vs Texas Arlington

21 points 4 rebounds 1 assist 1 steal vs Oklahoma State

A true center is not available so the Hawks might have to look at possibly improving their SF or PG position. They might go for Marquis Teague the younger brother of their starting PG Jeff Teague or Quincy Miller a true SF and good scorer that could learn a lot from Joe Johnson.

21. Dallas Mavericks

Biggest needs: PG/BPA

Marquis Teague - 6'2 PG Kentucky

NBA comparison - Jeff Teague

3 standout performances :

12 points 3 rebounds 10 assists 1 steal vs Florida

24 points 4 rebounds 7 assists 1 steal vs Iowa State @ March Madness

14 points 3 rebounds 7 assists 1 steal vs Indiana @ March Madness

Another pick that might be available. Dallas should go BPA if they keep the pick but they might decide that the additiona capspace they could have is more valueable to them.

22. Indiana Pacers

Biggest needs: PG

Tyshawn Taylor - 6'3 PG Kansas

NBA comparison : Mario Chalmers

3 standout performances:

22 points 6 rebounds 5 assists 5 steals vs North Carolina @ March Madness

16 points 1 rebound 10 assists 2 steals vs Iowa State

28 points 1 rebound 6 assists 4 steals vs Iowa State

The problem for Indiana is that they need a starting caliber point guard. Tyshawn Taylor is not that. He projects to be a rock solid backup point guard in the NBA. Indiana is another team that might sell their pick to gain additional cap space.

23. Boston Celtics

Biggest needs: C

Tony Wroten - 6'5 PG/SG Washington

NBA comparison: poor man's Russell Westbrook/John Wall without elite athleticism, still athletic

3 standout performances :

29 points 7 rebounds 3 assists 1 steal 2 blocks vs Oregon State

26 points 9 rebounds 4 assists 1 steal vs Oregon State

21 points 6 rebounds 5 assists 2 steals vs Washington State

Strikes me as a Danny Ainge type player, great defensive tools and upside and there is no center left on the board. On the other hand since the Celtics already have Rajon Rondo and Avery Bradley they might not want another player with similiar traits. Tony Wroten is one of the youngest players in college and a project at whatever position he will play in the NBA. A player I would love to see the Suns draft and develop as a defensive minded, slashing pointg guard.

A poor mans Russell Westbrook, although Tony Wroten probably had a much better year in college but not the same elite athletic ability.

24. Boston Celtics (via LA Clippers)

Biggest needs: C

Moe Harkless - 6'8 SF St. Johns

I have no idea what the Celtics will do in the offseason. Obviously they would love to draft a potential starting center and maybe they could go for Fab Melo here. For now I think Moe Harkless would be a good project for them with high upside relative to the draft position.

25. Cleveland Cavaliers (via LA Lakers)

Biggest needs: SG/SF

Dion Waiters - 6'4 SG Syracuse

After going big early it is time for the Cavs to get a backcourt partner for Kyrie Irving.

26. Orlando Magic

Biggest needs: PG/SG/SF

Terrence Ross - 6'6 SG Washington

27. Golden State (via Spurs)

Biggest needs: BPA

Patric Young - 6'9 F/C Florida

NBA comparison : Jahidi White

A steal this late in the draft. Patric Young is a workhorse, strong, athletic but raw and short for the center position. A little bit like Bismack Biyombo without the freakish wingspan.

28. Miami Heat

Biggest needs: C/PG

Fab Melo - 7' C Syracuse

The Heat need size in the worst way. I am surprised they did not go hard after someone like Robin Lopez though they probably had nothing to trade for him anyway.

29. Oklahoma City Thunder

Biggest needs: C

Evan Fournier - 6'7 SG/SF France

NBA comparison : Rudy Fernandez

30. Chicago Bulls

Biggest needs: SG/PF

John Jenkins - 6'4 SG Vanderbilt

NBA comparison : JJ Reddick

At the end of the first round you take what you can get and the Bulls can use a sharpshooter.

Some notable 2nd Round prospects:

Tony Mitchell, Freshman, 6'9 PF North Texas

Elias Harris, Senior, 6'9 SF/PF Gonzaga

Darius Miller , Senior, 6'7 SF Kentucky

Mason Plumlee, Junior, 6'10 PF Duke

Festus Ezeli, Senior, 6'11 C Vanderbilt

Royce White, Sophomore, 6'8 SF/PF Iowa St

Jeffrey Taylor, Senior, 6'7 SF Vanderbilt

Will Barton, Sophomore, 6'6 SG Memphis

CJ Leslie, Sophomore, 6'9 SF N.C. State

With March Madness coming to an end this weekend I decided to take a first look at how the draft could shake out in my opinion.

1. Charlotte Bobcats

Biggest Needs: SF/SG

Anthony Davis 6'10/6'11 PF Kentucky

NBA comparison: Camby-Marion-Duncan-Garnett hybrid - Really he needs no comparison

3 standout performances:

27 points 14 rebounds 7 blocks vs Arkansas

28 Points 11 rebounds 5 blocks 2 steals vs Vanderbilt

15 points 15 rebounds 8 blocks 2 steals vs St.John's

2. New Orleans Hornets

Biggest Needs: SF/PF/C/PG

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist 6'7 SF Kentucky

NBA comparison: Scottie Pippen

3 standout performances:

24 points 19 rebounds 1 assist vs Louisville

24 points 10 rebounds 1 assist vs Indiana @ March Madness

18 points 10 rebounds 1 assist 2 blocks 2 steals vs Mississippi State

3. Washington Wizards

Biggest Needs: PF/C/SG/SF

Bradley Beal - 6'5 SG Florida

NBA comparison: Eric Gordon/Dwyane Wade

3 standout performances:

20 points 8 rebounds 5 assists 1 steal 1 block vs Kentucky

21 points 6 rebounds 4 assists 2 steals 2 blocks vs Marquette @ March Madness

22 points 10 rebounds 3 assists 3 blocks vs Stetson

4. Sacramento Kings

Biggest needs: PG/SF/PF

Thomas Robinson 6'9 PF Kansas

NBA comparison: Antonio McDyess

3 standout performances:

30 points 21 rebounds 4 assists 1 block 2 steals vs North Dakota

25 points 14 rebounds 2 assists 1 steal vs Texas

20 points 17 rebounds 4 assists 2 steals 2 blocks vs Oklahoma

5. Toronto Raptors

Biggest needs: PG/SF

Kendall Marshall 6'4 PG North Carolina

NBA comparison: Andre Miller

3 standout performances:

22 points 13 assists 2 rebounds 1 steal vs North Carolina State

20 points 10 assists 4 rebounds 1 steal vs Duke

18 points 11 assists 4 rebounds 1 block vs Creighton @ March Madness

If you are left choosing between Marshall and Barnes, I'd take Marshall and I think that is the best impact player they can get to pair with DeRozan, Bargnani and Valanciunas.

6. Golden State

(if outside top 7 it goes to Utah) - Biggest needs: SF/C

Harrison Barnes 6'8 SF North Carolina

NBA comparison: poor man's Danny Granger/Jamal Mashburn/Glen Rice

3 standout performances:

26 points 10 rebounds 1 assists 1 block 2 steals vs Texas

24 points 7 rebounds 2 assists 2 steals vs Clemson

27 points 6 rebounds 3 steals 1 block vs Virginia Tech

7. Portland (via New Jersey)

Biggest needs: PG/SG/C

Austin Rivers - 6'4 SG Duke

NBA comparison: Monta Ellis

3 standout performances:

29 points 5 rebounds 2 assists 1 steal vs North Carolina

18 points 5 rebounds 5 assists 1 steal vs Virginia Tech

23 points 4 rebounds 1 assist 17 FTA vs Virginia Tech

8. Portland

Biggest needs PG/C

Cody Zeller - 7' F/C Indiana

NBA comparison: Pau Gasol

3 standout performances:

20 points 7 rebounds 2 assists vs Kentucky @ March Madness

16 points 13 rebounds 1 assist 1 block vs Virginia Commonwealth @ March Madness

19 points 10 rebounds 2 assists 1 steal 1 block vs Penn State

9. Cleveland

Biggest needs SG/SF/C

Tyler Zeller - 7' C North Carolina

NBA comparison: Chris Kaman

3 standout performances:

20 points 22 rebounds 4 blocks vs Ohio @ March Madness

21 points 17 rebounds 1 assist 2 steals 1 block vs North Carolina State

30 points 8 rebounds 3 blocks 2 steals 23 FTA vs Maryland

10. New Orleans (via Minnesota)

Biggest needs: PF/C/PG

Jared Sullinger - 6'9 PF Ohio State

NBA comparison: Zach Randolph / Al Jefferson

3 standout performances :

22 points 18 rebounds 3 assists 2 blocks vs Northwestern

30 points 12 rebounds 2 assists 3 blocks vs Purdue

23 points 11 rebounds 3 assists 1 steal vs Cincinatti @ March Madness

11. Detroit Pistons

Biggest needs: SG/SF/PF

Jeremy Lamb - 6'5 SG UConn

NBA comparison: Kevin Martin

3 standout performances:

32 points 5 rebounds 2 assists vs Villanova

25 points 5 rebounds 4 assists vs DePaul

25 points 8 rebounds 3 assists vs West Virginia

12. Phoenix Suns

Biggest needs: SG/SF/PF/PG

Andre Drummond - 6'10/6'11 F/C UConn

NBA comparison: DeAndre Jordan

3 standout performances:

20 points 11 rebounds 2 steals 3 blocks vs West Virginia

17 points 14 rebounds 3 blocks vs Syracuse

14 points 10 rebounds 3 blocks vs Syracuse

So the Suns are stuck chosing between two enigmas Andre Drummond and Perry Jones III. The Suns lucked out on Amare Stoudemire before, a similiar project as Drummond.

13. Milwaukee Bucks

Biggest needs: C/SF

Meyers Leonard - 7' C Illinois

NBA comparison: Chris Kaman

3 standout performances:

22 points 14 rebounds 2 assists 2 blocks vs Iowa

22 points 12 rebounds 2 assists 1 steal 5 blocks vs Richmond

19 points 16 rebounds 2 assists 3 blocks vs Cornell

14. Utah Jazz

Biggest needs: PG/SG/SF

Damian Lillard - 6'2 PG Weber State

NBA comparison: Jason Terry

3 standout performances:

41 points 8 rebounds 5 assists 2 steals 1 block vs San Jose State

29 points 10 rebounds 7 assists 1 steal 1 block vs Montana

38 points 5 rebounds 5 assists 1 steal 1 block vs Portland State

15. Houston (via New York)

Biggest needs: PF/C/SF

John Henson - 6'10 PF North Carolina

NBA comparison: Keon Clark / Andris Biedrins

3 standout performances:

16 points 16 rebounds 6 blocks vs Virginia Tech

14 points 12 rebounds 1 assists 2 steals 4 blocks vs Wake Forest

12 points 17 rebounds 2 assists 1 block vs Duke

I have a hard time letting Terrence Jones drop further but there is no way Houston picks him up after drafting a similiar player in Marcus Morris last year.

Luis Scola is declining fast, they are set in the backcourt and no great small forward or center is available. They could take Perry Jones III here as well.

16. New Jersey (via Houston)

Biggest needs: PF

Terrence Jones 6'9 SF/PF Kentucky

NBA comparison: Paul Milsap / Derrick Williams / Rodney Rogers

3 standout performances:

26 points 9 rebounds 4 steals 4 blocks vs St.John's

27 points 9 rebounds 1 assist 2 steals 3 blocks vs LSU

12 points 9 rebounds 6 assists 2 steals 3 blocks vs Baylor @March Madness

17. Denver Nuggets

Biggest needs: BPA

Perry Jones III - 6'11 PF Baylor

NBA comparison: Anthony Randolph / Zarko Cabarkapa

3 standout performances:

31 points 11 rebounds 1 assist 2 blocks vs Kansas State

22 points 13 rebounds 3 assists vs Texas

28 points 8 rebounds 4 assists 3 steals vs BYU

18. Philadelphia 76ers

Biggest needs: PF

Arnett Moultrie - 6'11 PF Mississippi State

NBA comparison: Mareese Speights

3 standout performances :

28 points 12 rebounds 1 steal vs LSU

21 points 14 rebounds 4 steals 1 block vs Vanderbilt

28 points 13 rebounds 2 steals vs South Alabama

Replacing Elton Brand will be the biggest task for the 76ers in the near future.

19. Memphis Grizzlies

Biggest needs: SG

Doron Lamb - 6'4 SG Kentucky

NBA comparison : Tony Delk

3 standout performances:

21 points 3 rebounds 2 assists 1 steal vs Indiana @ March Madness

26 points 4 rebounds 2 assists 1 steal vs Penn State

26 points 6 rebounds 1 steal vs Samford

20. Atlanta Hawks

Biggest needs: C/SF/PG

Quincy Miller - 6'9 SF Baylor

NBA comparison : Donte Greene

3 standout performances:

20 points 7 rebounds 3 steals vs Missouri

17 points 11 rebounds 6 assists 1 steal vs Texas Arlington

21 points 4 rebounds 1 assist 1 steal vs Oklahoma State

21. Dallas Mavericks

Biggest needs: PG/BPA

Marquis Teague - 6'2 PG Kentucky

NBA comparison - Jeff Teague

3 standout performances :

12 points 3 rebounds 10 assists 1 steal vs Florida

24 points 4 rebounds 7 assists 1 steal vs Iowa State @ March Madness

14 points 3 rebounds 7 assists 1 steal vs Indiana @ March Madness

Another pick that might be available. Dallas should go BPA if they keep the pick but they might decide that the additiona capspace they could have is more valueable to them.

22. Indiana Pacers

Biggest needs: PG

Tyshawn Taylor - 6'3 PG Kansas

NBA comparison : Mario Chalmers

3 standout performances:

22 points 6 rebounds 5 assists 5 steals vs North Carolina @ March Madness

16 points 1 rebound 10 assists 2 steals vs Iowa State

28 points 1 rebound 6 assists 4 steals vs Iowa State

23. Boston Celtics

Biggest needs: C

Tony Wroten - 6'5 PG/SG Washington

NBA comparison: poor man's Russell Westbrook/John Wall without elite athleticism, still athletic

3 standout performances :

29 points 7 rebounds 3 assists 1 steal 2 blocks vs Oregon State

26 points 9 rebounds 4 assists 1 steal vs Oregon State

21 points 6 rebounds 5 assists 2 steals vs Washington State

A poor mans Russell Westbrook, although Tony Wroten probably had a much better year in college but not the same elite athletic ability.

24. Boston Celtics (via LA Clippers)

Biggest needs: C

Moe Harkless - 6'8 SF St. Johns

25. Cleveland Cavaliers (via LA Lakers)

Biggest needs: SG/SF

Dion Waiters - 6'4 SG Syracuse

After going big early it is time for the Cavs to get a backcourt partner for Kyrie Irving.

26. Orlando Magic

Biggest needs: PG/SG/SF

Terrence Ross - 6'6 SG Washington

27. Golden State (via Spurs)

Biggest needs: BPA

Patric Young - 6'9 F/C Florida

NBA comparison : Jahidi White

A steal this late in the draft. Patric Young is a workhorse, strong, athletic but raw and short for the center position. A little bit like Bismack Biyombo without the freakish wingspan.

28. Miami Heat

Biggest needs: C/PG

Fab Melo - 7' C Syracuse

The Heat need size in the worst way. I am surprised they did not go hard after someone like Robin Lopez though they probably had nothing to trade for him anyway.

29. Oklahoma City Thunder

Biggest needs: C

Evan Fournier - 6'7 SG/SF France

NBA comparison : Rudy Fernandez

30. Chicago Bulls

Biggest needs: SG/PF

John Jenkins - 6'4 SG Vanderbilt

NBA comparison : JJ Reddick

At the end of the first round you take what you can get and the Bulls can use a sharpshooter.

Some notable 2nd Round prospects:

Tony Mitchell, Freshman, 6'9 PF North Texas

Elias Harris, Senior, 6'9 SF/PF Gonzaga

Darius Miller , Senior, 6'7 SF Kentucky

Mason Plumlee, Junior, 6'10 PF Duke

Festus Ezeli, Senior, 6'11 C Vanderbilt

Royce White, Sophomore, 6'8 SF/PF Iowa St

Jeffrey Taylor, Senior, 6'7 SF Vanderbilt

Will Barton, Sophomore, 6'6 SG Memphis

CJ Leslie, Sophomore, 6'9 SF N.C. State

Carmelo Anthony on Trade Block?

TruthTelling — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 16:17:09 -0000

It looks like Carmelo might be available for the right price.

Now let me first say I always thought that Carmelo Anthony going to New York to join D'antoni and Amare always was a bad fit. He likes to post up, likes to have the ball in the high post. He scores very similiar to Amare Stoudemire so that was never going to be a great match.

I realize that it is currently easy to hate on Carmelo but he is a legitimate NBA franchise player and top 10 player in the league.

Melo is turning 28, he is right about to enter his prime and if the Suns could somehow acquire him would give them a great chance to rebuild within a year with the capspace they have. Having a franchise player in place would go a long way recruiting other good free agents to come to Phoenix.

All hypothetical, don't call me out on the exact fairness of the deals, nobody would be untouchable on our roster for Carmelo except for our draft pick.

Nash, Dudley and Hill for Carmelo would work financially.

Say the Suns could then move Lopez and Brown to Milwaukee for Jennings and Gooden in a salary dump move for Milwaukee. We would lose a large part of our cap room but we could rebuild around Jennings, Carmelo, Gortat and our pick this year.

It looks like Carmelo might be available for the right price.

I realize that it is currently easy to hate on Carmelo but he is a legitimate NBA franchise player and top 10 player in the league.

All hypothetical, don't call me out on the exact fairness of the deals, nobody would be untouchable on our roster for Carmelo except for our draft pick.

Nash, Dudley and Hill for Carmelo would work financially.

Complicated Nash to Orlando 4-Way

TruthTelling — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 22:34:58 -0000

Just throwing this out as an idea:

TradeMachine

Phoenix Suns get:

Michael Beasley (expiring/RFA)

Martell Webster (can be bought out of his final year for 600.000)

Orlando 2012 pick

Lakers $8.6M TPE

Why Phoenix does it?

Phoenix removes all bad contracts of the cap and retain attractive RFA rights to Beasley which would enable them to match contract offers if reasonable.

Phoenix would amnesty the last year on Warricks deal, buyout Telfair and Webster.

Phoenix would only be comitted to Gortat, Dudley, Morris and their 2012 draft picks next season wich small guarantees still owed to Webster and Telfair ~$1M.

This would give Phoenix around $38M caproom if they decide to not match Beasley (which they should for something around 5yrs/$45M.

Orlando gets:

Steve Nash

Josh Childress

Why Orlando does it:

They give up cap flexibility for one last run. They get to keep Anderson and hope it is enough to convince Dwight to stay.

Minnesota gets:

JJ Redick

Channing Frye

Why Minnesota does it:

They get two outside shooters which Rubio needs in the system. They also get a shooting guard that could start for them. They give up 2 expirings that probably are not part of their future plans anyway.

Alternatively Minnesota could get Jason Richardson instead of JJ Redick.

Lakers get:

Jameer Nelson

Why Lakers do it:

They are reportedly interested in Felton. Nelson is as good a player as Felton, probably better shooter, contract is a year longer but they pick him for just their TPE. If that is not enough for the Lakers a future pick could go their way from Orlando.

Just throwing this out as an idea:

TradeMachine

Phoenix Suns get:

Michael Beasley (expiring/RFA)

Martell Webster (can be bought out of his final year for 600.000)

Orlando 2012 pick

Lakers $8.6M TPE

Why Phoenix does it?

Phoenix removes all bad contracts of the cap and retain attractive RFA rights to Beasley which would enable them to match contract offers if reasonable.

Phoenix would amnesty the last year on Warricks deal, buyout Telfair and Webster.

Phoenix would only be comitted to Gortat, Dudley, Morris and their 2012 draft picks next season wich small guarantees still owed to Webster and Telfair ~$1M.

This would give Phoenix around $38M caproom if they decide to not match Beasley (which they should for something around 5yrs/$45M.

Orlando gets:

Steve Nash

Josh Childress

Why Orlando does it:

They give up cap flexibility for one last run. They get to keep Anderson and hope it is enough to convince Dwight to stay.

Minnesota gets:

JJ Redick

Channing Frye

Why Minnesota does it:

Alternatively Minnesota could get Jason Richardson instead of JJ Redick.

Lakers get:

Jameer Nelson

Why Lakers do it:

Best Free Agent Bet: LINSANITY Jeremy Lin ?

TruthTelling — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 18:56:13 -0000

Looks like possibly the next Steve Nash? Check

Young? Check

Unrestricted FA? Check

Franchise Cashcow? Check

He would get the Suns some attention, all assuming he can keep up starter quality play.

Knicks do not hold bird rights? Check, the Knicks can offer him their MLE at most.

He is currently 2nd in PER in the league and averages 25/8/4 in the last 3. Lets say his production drops to 12/6 for the rest of the year what would you offer?

Looks like possibly the next Steve Nash? Check

Young? Check

Unrestricted FA? Check

Franchise Cashcow? Check

He would get the Suns some attention, all assuming he can keep up starter quality play.

Knicks do not hold bird rights? Check, the Knicks can offer him their MLE at most.

He is currently 2nd in PER in the league and averages 25/8/4 in the last 3. Lets say his production drops to 12/6 for the rest of the year what would you offer?

Some Historical Draft Analysis

TruthTelling — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 23:11:01 -0000

I did some work here based on the top 100 players voting done on the realgm player comparison board.

You can find the list here http://forums.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f=64&t=1123731 as I don't know how to embed my excel sheet here.

Avg Draft Position Top 100 9,4 ( excluding players that were not drafted )

Avg Draft Position Top 10 3,22 excludes Wilt Chamberlain
Avg Draft Position #10-20 7 excludes Moses Malone
Avg Draft Position #20-30 4,9
Avg Draft Position #30-40 21,6 -> Gilmore #117, Gervin #40, Stockton #16 and Drexler #14
Avg Draft Position #40-50 4,1
Avg Draft Position #50-60 12,3 excludes Paul Arizin
Avg Draft Position #60-70 12,3
Avg Draft Position #70-80 7,9
Avg Draft Position #80-90 9,57 excludes Connie Hawkins,Ben Wallace and Bill Sharman
Avg Draft Position #90-100 21,44 excludes Dave DeBusschere

The extremes are results of players like Gilmore at 117, Gervin at 40, Ginobili at 57, Laimbeer 65, Dandridge 45 these players stand out in terms of their draft position compared to the rest.

avg position drafts in
00s 2,86
90s 7,84 excludes Ben Wallace undrafted
80s 9,3
70s 16,27 excludes Moses Malone

Eliminating extremes here
avg position drafts in
90s minus Wallace and Ginobili 4,6
70s minus Gilmore and Gervin 10,05

Undrafted Players : 8 Ben Wallace, Moses Malone, Connie Hawkins, DeBusschere, Jerry Lucas, Chamberlain, Sharman, Arizin most of them territorial picks

So 49 out of the 92 drafted top 100 players were top 3 picks. 75 of the 92 drafted top 100 players were top 9 picks.

Drafting higher is always better everyone should have known that before. With the restriction of highschool players not being able to enter the league anymore and foreign players being scouted much more extensively since Dirk Nowitzki there are even less surprises in the draft as evidenced by the average draft position of the great players in the last 10 years.

And that trend will not change with Kevin Durant #2, Blake Griffin #1, Derek Rose #1, Russell Westbrook #4, Kevin Love #5, John Wall #1, Kyrie Irving #1, Ricky Rubio #5 and other possible candidates eventually getting in that list.

When you look back at the last 25 years and the franchise players that have been in the league the only franchise players not drafted in the top 5 were Steve Nash #15, Kobe Bryant #13, Tracy McGrady #9, Dirk Nowitzki #9 and Brandon Roy #6.
I do not consider Manu Ginobili or Ben Wallace franchise players.

Brandon Roy misses the cut by 1 spot, McGrady and Kobe were highschoolers before the hype and teams were wary plus Kobe refused to work out for almost anyone and Dirk Nowitzki was a foreign prospect at a time where oversea scouting wasn't where it is now. Dirk Nowitzki was a pioneer pick in that regard pretty much.

You have to go all the way back to 1985 Karl Malone at #13 and John Stockton in 1984 at 16 to find franchise players that were drafted outside the top 10.

I did some work here based on the top 100 players voting done on the realgm player comparison board.

You can find the list here http://forums.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f=64&t=1123731 as I don't know how to embed my excel sheet here.

View of One Fan: Rebuilding the Suns Through The Draft

TruthTelling — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 21:57:39 -0000

Do you remember the last few drafts leading up to the Suns selection of Amare Stoudemire?

Suns.com used to provide us with great coverage of the workouts. There was excitement in the fan base leading up to the draft. Ever since the Nash era began we were shut out from the draft experience. Every year we were disappointed with the unfancy pick or straight selling our pick for cash. A truly horrible experience as a fan. Remember that year they presented Amare Stoudemire to us as our draft pick after they sold our pick again because he came back from micro-fracture surgery?

Do you know the guy whose rights we sold? I give you a hint. Mike D'Antoni said he could not play that player because he could not shoot.

Anyone who played NBA 2k11 had the pleasure of consistently being reminded by the announcers that the Suns traded away draft picks for Rajon Rondo, Luol Deng, Rudy Fernandez, Nate Robinson, Serge Ibaka and so on. Good times being a Suns fan, going from great draft coverage and excitement to a strategy of pissing off the fanbase every year.

Do you remember the last few drafts leading up to the Suns selection of Amare Stoudemire?

Do you know the guy whose rights we sold? I give you a hint. Mike D'Antoni said he could not play that player because he could not shoot.

NBA Draft Asset Generator

The NBA draft is the only true asset generator for NBA teams. You get a free chance to improve the value of your team every year with little risk due to the rookie scale contracts. Using the draft is esentially to stay competetive and to rebuild a team. The Suns have not made use of the draft for the last 10 years basically and that is why they are in the situation they are in right now. A terrible team with no future to look forward to as a fan. I could fully appreciate our team even when they are losing and play bad basketball if I had something to look forward to down the road.

Do you remember Amare Stoudemire's rookie season or sophomore season? We were not a good team, in the second year we finished #7 in the lottery and sold the pick which could have been Andre Iguodala just so we could hand out a bigger contract to Quentin Richardson.

And that is the mistake. The Suns front office in the past and Lon Babby right now think that free agency is the way to build a team and do not seem to value the draft. The problem with free agency is that really good players usually never hit the open market in the NBA and if they do there are many teams interested in signing them so you have to offer an attractive situation. Great players want to play with great players.

Other than that most teams are hopelessly trying to sign one mediocre or even above average free agent after another and keep drafting late in the lottery. The majority of free agent signings in the NBA eventually turn out to be bad contracts that no team wants to pick up. This happened to the Suns when they handed out a big deal to Josh Childress who had not played in the NBA for years and another big deal to Channing Frye.

Contruction of Good Teams

I keep seeing people on message boards repeating the words of Lon Babby that good teams do not build through the draft and that Oklahoma City is an exception so let us take a look at the good teams in the NBA:

San Antonio drafted Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, Tony Parket, DeJuan Blair, Tiago Splitter.

Miami drafted Dwyane Wade, Udonis Haslem, Mario Chalmers, Norris Cole and previously Michael Beasley who they had to get rid off to afford the signings of James and Bosh.

Dallas technically they did not draft Dirk Nowitzki but that is a moot point. They had a draft day deal set up to get Dirk Nowitzki so full credit to them. They also later drafted Josh Howard, Rodrigue Beaubois.

LA Lakers acquired Kobe Byrant and Andrew Bynum through the draft.

Memphis acquired Gasol, Gay, Conley, Mayo through the draft.

Utah acquired Kanter, Hayward, Burks, Millsap through the draft and previous to that Deron Williams who they turned into more assets when pressured to do so.

Denver acquired JR Smith, Ty Lawson, Nene through the draft.

Portland acquired Aldridge, Roy, Oden, Batum through the draft.

Oklahoma City acquired Durant, Westbrook, Ibaka, Harden through the draft.

Chicago Bulls got Derek Rose, Joakim Noah and Luol Deng.

Orlando Magic got Dwight Howard, Jameer Nelson, Ryan Anderson, JJ Reddick.

Indiana Pacers got Hibbert, Granger and George.

Clippers got Griffin, Jordan and how did they acquire Chris Paul? Giving up Aminu and Gordon.

Atlanta acquired Josh Smith, Al Horford, Marvin Williams and Jeff Teague through the draft.

Philadelphia acquired Iguodala, Holiday, Louis Williams, Meeks, Turner, Thaddeus Young through the draft.

Boston acquired Paul Pierce, Rajon Rondo and got Kevin Garnett by trading Al Jefferson who they drafted and acquired Ray Allen by trading their #5 draft pick.

Those are all currently over .500 teams in the NBA with the exception of Houston the only team in the NBA over .500 that did not acquire the key players in the draft but still they are filled with players on rookie deals.

Now you take a look at our very own Phoenix Suns and you will see that Markieff Morris and Robin Lopez are the only players on this team that we acquired through the draft. Everyone else was acquired as a free agent or through non draft-related trades. Go figure that Robin Lopez might not be on the Suns soon.

Rebuilding through the Draft does not always work

Yes Lon Babby is right. Rebuilding through the draft might mean that your team stays bad for several years but this comes down to how good your team is at drafting and as you can see above it ultimately essential for running a good team. The San Antonio Spurs do not just stay good by managing the contracts as Robert Sarver tried to tell us in the past. They are good at using the draft to keep their team in the mix and keep assets on their roster.

Obviously there are teams like Golden State who stay bad for years but usually that is due to one of the following reasons:

1. Those teams spend cap room on free agents that do not have enough impact to make a real difference for the team which keeps those teams from ever truly hitting rock bottom which increases chances to draft a franchise player.

2. Those teams consistently make bad draft choices.

3. Both of the above combined.

As a Suns fan we face the risk of our front office not blowing things up right now and ending up at outside of the top 5 picks and then use our capspace to sign good but not great free agents like Wilson Chandler to big deals so we will again look at a late lottery pick next year while not having the capspace to sign a franchise changing free agent if one ever becomes available or simply not being attractive to them.

Trading Steve Nash

Trading Steve Nash is esential. Another blog on this site a couple of days ago summarized that trading Steve Nash accomplishes nothing. That is wrong. While it would be nice to have Steve Nash leadership around to help develop young guys, you also have to consider that Steve Nash will keep us out of the top 5. Plus Steve Nash allows the Suns to run a very specific type of offense that they will not be able to execute in the post-Nash era. Players like Markieff Morris and Marcin Gortat need to develop moves in an offense that requires more than shooting open jumpers or executing a pick and roll with Steve Nash.

If you could trade Steve Nash to Utah for Devin Harris and one or two of their draft picks or to Indiana for Collison and draft picks you have to do it right now. You have to stay in the race for the #1 pick to have a chance at a quick rebuilding process after this year. The value that is coming back in a Nash trade is not the only value, it is also the value of the Suns' very own pick that increases dramatically.

Value of Marcin Gortat

It is not easy to deal a center when the franchise with the exception of one great year of Shaquille O'Neal has been chronically lacking a center. But there are things to consider. The Suns are some years away from being relevant again. Gortat has by far the highest trade value on the team and his value might never be higher than what it is right now. He soon turns 28 so by the time the Suns are halfway through a 5 years rebuilding process he would be 30 and looking for a new contract which you can figure will pay him more than 10 million dollars per year. You come to the conclusion that Marcin Gortat to a team that is further along with the rebuilding process like for example Minnesota has much higher value than to the Suns. Exploring his trade value could go a long way to make a future changing trade.

Free Agency Plan 2012

With Love, Gallinari and Westbrook off the market there is not much hope that the Suns can land a difference maker. Dwight Howard and Deron Williams openly have their list of preferred destinations out there and the Suns are on none of them. It is not even a given that they will be free agents and if they do you figure they will go to the new Brooklyn team or one of them will go to Dallas rather than to a struggling Suns team with an owner that the media loves to portay as the worst owner in pro sports.

Eric Gordon and Roy Hibbert did not get extensions or rather declined them. This means nothing as their teams still have the rights to match any offer and certainly will. The best player that might be available is Brook Lopez and would he want to come here if we have Gortat and just might have traded away his twin brother?

NBA Draft 2012

The only thing to look forward to right now. The higher the pick the better this has always been true. I keep reading how some fans say we got Marion and Amare at #9 so we should not worry about our draft position but that is non-sense. We got relatively lucky those years as other teams failed to pick the best player infront of us but in general franchise chaning players very rarely are found outside of the top 3 and the rate gets lower with draft position.

Two things that every Sun fan knows are:

1. The Suns have never had a #1 pick.

2. The Suns have never won a championship.

That is not coincidence. Twice the Suns lost a coinflip for the #1 pick and missed out on Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and David Robinson. I am not being unreasonable when I say that the Suns would have at least 1 championship by now had they won one of the #1 picks.

March Madness is still weeks away but here is my current list of draft prospects in order that I like. It is my own evaluation for the Suns and not what I think the actual draft order will be like.

1. PF Anthony Davis - Kentucky

6'10 at least with extremly long arms. Averages almost 5 blocks per game and close to 2 steals. He is a mix of Shawn Marion and Marcus Camby at the PF position. He needs to get stronger and he will probably still grow. Around Anthony Davis you can probably build a great defensive team.

2. C/F Andre Dummond - UCONN

6'11 251 His game is similiar to young Amare Stoudemire with slightly better ballhandling and passing and he is considerably bigger.

3. G/F Michael Kidd-Gilchrist - Kentucky

6'7 230 and extremly athletic. He reminds me right now of Andre Iguodala with lesser passing. He is the poster-child of a "lead by example" and would be perfect guy to rebuild around. Keepin mind he won't turn 19 until shortly before next season.

4. SG Bradley Beal - Florida

6'4 200lbs this guy knows how to score. He has an arsenal of moves and his jumper looks like he will be a very good shooter eventually. He rebounds the ball really well for his size.

5. SF Harrison Barnes - North Carolina

6'9 223 he is clearly a SF. He has nice all-around game but he is not a great athlete or very explosive. He could be the next Paul Pierce if he gets more aggressive. Or he could be the next Glenn Robinson or just a role player. This guy has question marks about his ceiling as a player for the position he is projected to be picked. He would be ideal for a bad team that is close to being good and has more pieces already in place.

6. SG Jeremy Lamb - UCONN

6'5 190 Reminds me of a bigger more athletic version of Rip Hamilton. Moves very well without the ball. He would fit well with a PG that likes to control things, not sure how well he would play if the ball is put into his hands.

7. F Perry Jones - Baylor

6'11 220lbs maybe taller. Very long and loves to shoot from the outside. This guy needs to get tougher and stronger and start rebounding like crazy. He has the physical tools to be the #1 pick but questions about his position will hurt his stock. In the NBA he has to be a PF but his skillset in college makes him look like a SF at times. Pray he turns into the next KG and not into the next Anthony Randolph if you pick the guy.

8. PF Thomas Robinson - Kansas

6'9 240 this guy is an aggressive PF that is athletic and wants to dunk everything. He plays very much like Amare Stoudemire and rebounds the ball well in college. Good kid too, but he looks a little bit short and he is also already a junior I think so you expect him to be more advanced. On defense he is not much of a shotblocking presence averaging just 1.1 compared to Anthony Davis who puts up 4.7

9. PF Jared Sullinger - Ohio State

6'9 270 another short PF. In college he is a monster in the post. Al Jefferson off college basketball unfortunately his defense is non-existant and he is an average athlete. Blocks less than 1 shot per game.

10. G Austin Rivers - Duke

6'4 combo guard. Extremly talented, fast and athletic isolation guard. Think Jamal Crawford, Monta Ellis, Lou Williams, Allen Iverson. He comes across a little bit arrogant. He is the son of Celtics coach Doc Rivers. Explosive first step and good shooter. He has an up and down freshman season but talent is there. He would be a good player to have on rebuilding project because he gives you at least someone who can score and have big games. Attitude is the only question here.

11. SF Quincy Miller - Baylor

6'9 200 small forward. He draws comparisons to Kevin Durant. He is long, athletic and skilled. He was once projected to be a potential #1 pick overall but tore his ACL more than a year ago. His knee is the issue here but considering he was just 18 years old when that happened he should have had a good recovery.

12. F Terrence Jones - Kentucky

6'9 forward. I did not like him much last year but he is playing really efficient all-around basketball for a talented Kentucky team. Shooting almost 40% from college 3 and averaging nearly 2 blocks per game along his teammate Davis who averages another 5 almost. Could he be what Earl Clark should have been?

13. G/F LeBryan Nash - Oklahoma State

6'7 same physique as Michael Kidd-Gilchrist. Needs to work on his jumper. If he can do that and improve his ball-handling he would be better served as a shooting guard in the NBA probably just as MKG. Had a breakout game recently but a bad freshman season overall so far.

14. PG Myck Kabongo - Texas

6'2 shooting guard. A true PG, unselfish with good court vision and passing skills. He needs to improve his shooter and be more aggressive at times. He will be a good starting SG that might not get a lot of recognition. Raymond Felton might be a good comparison or Andre Miller / Rajon Rondo mold. He is a guy I am really hoping declares and that we can pick him up later in the first with an additional pick.

Clearly the top 5 is where we want to be. Sitting at #8 we would likely look at having to draft one of the power forwards that are there when we just drafted Markieff Morris last year. Although I do not think that Markieff projects as a good starter in the league I would not want to draft another PF with questionmarks right now.

NBA Draft 2013

I am not shocking you when I tell you that next year will not be pretty either. It will take more time to turn the franchise around. Unless we make the mistake to sign free agents to big contracts and end up in mediocrity again we should have a young team with some talented players but win few enough games to be in the hunt for the #1 pick and the prize in 2013 is promising

Shabazz Muhammad is a 6'6 shooting guard and currently chosing between some of the best college programs for his freshman season. He might actually go to Arizona. He is probably the most promising shooting guard prospect to enter the NBA since Kobe Bryant.

http://www.youtube.com/v/iZOKFfNU0Nk

Steve Nash Face of the Franchise

Many people argue that we cannot and will not trade Steve Nash because not only that he does not want it but also because Robert Sarver wants to keep him to sell tickets. As I can see our attendance this season is already horrible. The fan base that has shrunk in the Robert Sarver era is shrinking even more every day this team struggles to score 80 points while keeping an aging roster that offers the fan nothing. A young team at least offers us a chance to root for young players to develop and it keeps us interested to see what they can do on a game to game basis.

Keeping Steve Nash around much longer in this situation in my opinion will overall turn off the fanbase even more. Imagine we keep Steve Nash here in Phoenix for 2 more years in which we have no chance to make the playoffs but also no chance to draft in the top 10 and the front office only then when Nash retires decides to rebuild. Clearly that is the worst thing that could happen to the Suns fanbase.

Lets hope the 2012 Draft will be the first exciting draft for us since 2003.