ESPN's Chad Ford reminds us that it's never too early to begin looking ahead to next year (especially if you're a Nets fan), as he breaks down who the worst teams in the league would likely select with the top pick in the 2010 draft.
↵Ford's verdict? John Wall is so jaw-breakingly talented that even teams set at point guard like the Nets and Timberwolves (with Devin Harris and Johny Flynn respectively) would make the Kentucky frosh the first player off the board. The only team that would likely pass on Wall? The Utah Jazz, who happen to have the second-best point guard in the Association, Deron Williams. Ford envisions Utah taking a flyer on an athletic big like Derrick Favors instead.
↵But wait, you ask, how are the Jazz in the mix for the number one pick in 2010? And this is where Utah fans can thank Isiah Thomas, the gift that just keeps on giving (to other NBA teams). Thomas included the Knicks' unprotected 2010 first-round pick in the 2004 Stephon Marbury trade, which Phoenix then shipped to the Jazz in a salary dump. If Steve Francis and Eddy Curry weren't reason enough for Knicks fans to look back fondly on the Isiah Thomas era, losing their first-round pick in a deep draft in a year when they have the third-worst record in the league certainly should be.
↵On Isiah Thomas' behalf: you're welcome, New York.