NBA Draft Grades

http://www.csnne.com/boston-celtics/blakely-nba-draft-grades



Blakely: NBA Draft grades
June 27, 2014, 1:30 am





BOSTON — The 2014 NBA draft is a thing of the past now, providing teams and us in the media, a chance to sit back and digest what just happened.

There were some teams that clearly improved their roster significantly through the draft while others have little to show for their draft night efforts.

Here's CSNNE.com's breakdown of the draft with grades for each team.


ATLANTA - Adrien Payne (1,15). Walter Taveres (2,43)
Payne gives the Hawks a stretch big which teams seem to never have enough of, and Taveres is a quality addition considering where he was drafted. The Hawks needed to add a rim protector and the 7-2 Taveres fits the bill. Grade: A-

BOSTON: Marcus Smart (1,6); James Young (1,17)
Boston was hoping that Joel Embiid or Aaron Gordon would be available at No. 6, but Smart will provide help immediately. He's a physical, gritty defender who can hold his own at multiple positions. And the addition of Young at No. 17 is a bit surprising when most NBA experts had him pegged as a lottery (top-14) pick. Grade: A-

BROOKLYN: Xavier Thames (2,59. Acquired via trade from Toronto); Cory Jefferson (2,60)
They began the night without any draft picks. Thames and Jefferson give them a couple players with a decent shot of making the team. GRADE: C

CHARLOTTE: Noah Vonleh (1,9); P.J. Hairston (1,26. Acquired via trade from Miami); Dwight Powell (2,45)
Vonleh was not expected to slide this far, but you won't hear any complaints from the Hornets. And by drafting Shabazz Napier (knowing the Miami Heat desperately wanted him), the Hornets wound up with the guy they really wanted (Hairston) in addition to a couple of future picks. GRADE: B+

CHICAGO: Doug McDermott (1,11. Acquired via trade from Denver); Cameron Bairstow (2,49)
The Bulls needed to add a scorer and parlayed a couple of lower level first-round picks into the best scorer in the draft. And Bairstow's physical play will play well with ex-Celtic assistant Tom Thibodeau. GRADE: B

CLEVELAND: Andrew Wiggins (1,1); Joe Harris (2,33)
The Cavs go Wiggins over Jabari Parker after spending most of the past couple of weeks trying to move the pick. Joe Harris should not only make the opening night roster, but he could play his way into a rotation player sooner rather than later. GRADE: B

DALLAS: No picks
No grade.

DENVER: Jusuf Nurkic (1,16. Acquired via trade from Chicago); Gary Harris (1,19. Acquired via trade from Chicago);  Nikola Jovic (2,41); Devyn Marble (2,56. Will be sent to Orlando as part of Afflalo trade).
Acquiring Arron Afflalo on the eve of the NBA draft was apparently just the beginning of the wheeling and dealing for the Nuggets. They turned a late lottery pick into a pair of players (Nurkic and Harris) with lottery pick talent. Grade: A

DETROIT: Spender Dinwiddie (2,38)
If not for his torn ACL injury, Dinwiddie's probably looking at being a first-round pick with a guaranteed contract. He's one of those guys that in a year from now, there will be a few GMs shaking their heads for not selecting him. Grade: B

GOLDEN STATE: No picks
No grade.

HOUSTON: Clint Capela (1,25); Nick Johnson (2,42)
The Rockets need to add some much-needed firepower to their bench. And they failed to achieve that via the draft. Grade: D

INDIANA
They had one pick near the end of the second round (Louis Labeyrie) and they shipped him out for cash from the New York Knicks. Grade: No Grade.

L.A. CLIPPERS: C.J. Wilcox (1,28)
Doc Rivers gets one of the more under-rated players in this draft in Wilcox who has a nice catch-and-shoot game. Grade: B

L.A. LAKERS: Julius Randle (1,7); Jordan Clarkson (2, 46. Acquired via trade from Washington)
The Lakers get a double-double machine in Randle along with adding a versatile guard in the second round with first-round talent. Grade: A-

MEMPHIS: Jordan Adams (1,22); Jarnell Stokes (2,35. Acquired via trade from Utah)
Don't be surprised if the Grizzlies' second-round pick (Stokes) gets more run early on than their first-round selection. GRADE: B

MIAMI: Shabazz Napier (1,24. Acquired via trade from Charlotte); Semaj  Christon (2,55)
Not sure the logic behind drafting a pair of point guards if Miami has any interest in making a run at Toronto's Kyle Lowry. GRADE: B-

MILWAUKEE: Jabari Parker (1,2); Damien Ingles (2,31); Johnny O'Bryant (2,36); Lamar Patterson (2,48)
Parker and O'Bryant were both excellent picks. Ingles and Patterson? Not so much. Grade: B-

MINNESOTA: Zach LaVine (1,13). Glenn Robinson III (2,40); Markel Brown (2,44). Alessandro Gentile (2,53)
This wasn't exactly the kind of draft-night haul that will make Kevin Love want to stay put in Minnesota. GRADE: C+

NEW ORLEANS: Russ Smith (2,47. Acquired via trade with Philadelphia)

The Pelicans traded for their rim-protecting big man, and follow that up by adding one of the best one-on-one scorers in this draft. Grade: B+


NEW YORK: Cleanthony Early (2,34); Thanasis Antetokounmpo (2,51). Louis Labeyrie (2,57. Acquired via trade from Indiana)
Early should have been a first-round selection and Antetokounmpo probably should have been selected higher in the second round. Grade: B+

OKLAHOMA CITY: Mitch McGary (1,21). Josh Huestis (1,29)
The Thunder add a pair of specialists in the first round, adding depth to one of the deepest teams in the NBA already. GRADE: B+

ORLANDO: Aaron Gordon (1,4); Elfrid Payton (1,10. Acquired via trade from Philadelphia)
The Magic land a high-energy difference maker in Gordon and their point guard of the future in Payton. Grade: A-

PHILADELPHIA: Joel Embiid (1,3); Dario Saric (1,12. Acquired via trade from Orlando); K.J. McDaniels (2,32); Jerami Grant (2,39); Vasilije Micic (2,52). Nemanja Dangubic (2,54)
The Sixers have a pair of first-rounders who each may not play this season. Oh yeah, the fans of Philly will totally understand and be patient. Grade: C-

PHOENIX: T.J. Warren (1,14). Tyler Ennis (1,18). Bogdan Bogdanovic (1,27). Alec Brown (2,50)
It's tough to get it right with a couple of picks, but Ryan McDonough and the Suns scored big with all four of its picks. GRADE: A+

PORTLAND: No picks
No grade

SACRAMENTO: Nik Stauskas (1,
Kings fans weren't too thrilled with their selection of Stauskas, a good player but the eighth-best player in this draft? I don't think so. Grade: C-

SAN ANTONIO: Kyle Anderson (1,30). Jordan McRae (2,58). Corey Jefferson (traded to Brooklyn)
Boris Diaw's a free agent, so they draft the closing thing to Diaw in this draft. This is why the Spurs are a step ahead of everyone else. Grade: A-

TORONTO: Bruno Caboclo (1,20). DeAndre Daniels (2,37)
Should have used one of these picks to take a point guard in case re-signing Kyle Lowry hits a snag. Grade: C

UTAH: Dante Exum (1,5); Rodney Hood (1,23)
The rise of Aaron Gordon and Nik Stauskas up the draft boards allowed the Jazz to land two of the draft's better prospects. Grade: A-

WASHINGTON: No picks
No grade




bob
MY NOTE:  I think he's all wrong about Philly.  I think Sam Hinkie, while doing something that I consider despicable, deliberately tanking, drafted and traded exceptionally well on Thursday.  I'd be ecstatic with either or both of those picks and we're not much better than Philly and certainly no more patient than Sixer fans.  And as far as Young being projected as a 'lottery pick' by most, how about a name?  I found exactly one who put  him in the top 14.  That doesn't mean he's not good at #17, I'd just like Blakely to back up his BS with some evidence.

How do you all grade the draft?


.

Here's Chad Ford's grades:






bob



.

Celtics did very well.

The Smart pick is absolutely an A+ for this rebuilding franchise.  He's ready to play now, could become our starting 2-guard with or without Bradley's departure, gives us insurance in a year at point if Rondo walks, and depending on the overall picture with Smart's development, may even let us deal Rondo if needed late in the coming season.  The only two players that would have been better picks were Parker and Wiggins.  Both of those, of course, were impossibilities.

Young is probably a strong B, so A- seems about right.

This time, I believe, Danny will prove to have gotten it right.

steve3344 wrote:Cleveland lands Andrew Wiggins and that gets them a B?

OK.

steve,

They should get an A+ just for not drafting the next Anthony Bennett.



bob



.

Giving grades the day after the draft is like doing a mock draft before -- you're going to be wrong a lot, and you won't be able to truly tell how right or wrong you were until later.

Draft grades hold more weight after a year or so.

With that said, I thought Boston drafted better this year than last year. I think Smart and Young are two talented players that can provide some excitement and glimmers moving forward.


KJ