Pictured: Robin Lopez; may or may not be the alter ego of Justin Guarini.Yeah, we haven't posted anything in a while. Don't like it? - Go fuck yourself.
1. Chicago - Derrick Rose: Pay no mind to anything you read this week about Chicago being unsure or Rose "refusing" to work out for Miami. Rose will go number one to the Bulls and promptly be mismanaged by his woefully inexperienced coach.
2. Miami - Michael Beasley: It pains me greatly to take O.J Mayo's name out of this spot - not because it was a smart pick, but because it was a ballsy one. I mean, that took balls on my part. Big, giant, brass balls. Yeah. Riley might not be too fond Beasley, but he will milk this pick for all its worth, taking everyone else's consensus #2 pick and getting some additional value. Seattle is obviously the leading trade partner here. It all depends on what Minnesota does. He could also be running the rumor mill - as he often does this time of year (i.e. 2003 Maciej Lampe smokescreen to clear way to take Dwayne Wade) and secretly be coveting Beasley.
3. Minnesota - OJ Mayo: See above. This spot is far too early for any of the big men that McHale covets, so they'll take the 3rd guy off of everyone's board and trade down. New Jersey has the perfect two picks to make this happen: #10 and #21. But is there anyone the Nets are targeting at #3? - Hard to say.
4. Seattle - Jerryd Bayless: It's a lock. Such a lock in fact that Jeff told me he'll run around the NBA Draft naked if it doesn't happen.
5. Memphis - Kevin Love: Widely reported as a promise pick. I believe it.
6. New York - Danilo Gallinari: I know what you hot, young, sexy high school girls reading this are thinking: "Gallinari to the Knicks? Like that is soooooo lastweek! I'll still bang Zach though." To which I say, "Let me explain!" and "Why, thank you.", respectively. About a week ago, Gallinari said that he would only guarantee coming over if he were selected by the Knicks or Nets. Just prior to Monday's draft deadline, Arn Tellem (Gallinari's agent) said that he would return to Italy if he were not taken in the top 10. So, barring a serbian-jew-double-bluff on the part of Tellem, Gallinari has to go #6 or #10. We know it's not #10 to the Nets, because the Nets have reportedly made a promise to another young man (more on that later)
7. Los Angeles Clippers - Eric Gordon: Clippers need a 2 guard and Easy G is the best one on the board. Don't be surprised if Russell Westbrook goes here either.
8. Milwaukee - Joe Alexander: The Bucks are in desperate need of a SF and Alexander would mesh with Skiles quite nicely since he is a hard worker and comes from a military family. However, his shooting needs to improve drastically. Bottom line: If the Bucks stay here, they're taking Alexander. If they move the pick, it's going to be to slide down in the draft, not up.
9. Charlotte - Brook Lopez: He must be going #9 because..
10. New Jersey - Robin Lopez: A report yesterday points out that Robin has canceled all of his other workouts since his Nets evaluation due to a "sprained ankle" (Hey kids, the quotation marks mean that I'm inferring that this is bullshit!). What a miserable pick this would be. If reports start coming out to support the sprained ankle excuse, then expect to see the Robin drop down a couple of notches.
11. Indiana - Russell Westbrook: Indiana needs a PG and Westbrook is the best available. Whether or not he's a true point at this stage of his career is inconsequential - he's a freak athlete with a great body for the position. He'll never be a passing wizard, but there's no rule that says you have to slap nuthugging shorts on every point guard and call him John Stockton.
12. Sacramento - Darrell Arthur: A fast 4, ideal for Reggie Theus' offense. ("Shouldn't Reggie Theus also draft that chick from Hang Time?" - Chris)
13. Portland - D.J Augustin: Portland is incredibly young and odds are Kevin Pritchard will take this pick along with Raef LaFrentz's expiring contract and turn it into a solid veteran. If that's the case, then there will probably be a team in the bottom third of the draft looking to nab the best PG left on the board, Augustin, before another team gets the chance (Cleveland will most definitely be on the phone with the Blazers). If Portland keeps the pick, they're taking a 1 guard anyway. Augustin is a safe bet to go in this slot.
14. Golden State - Donte Greene: He's a great athlete, solid scorer and a terrible defender. The Warriors should start selling his jersey today.
15. Phoenix - Brandon Rush: If the board goes down like this, Phoenix gets their man without trading up.
16. Philadelphia - Anthony Randolph: Ouch, what a spill. That's what you get for dogging your way through workouts: a multi-million dollar pay cut and residency in Philadelphia. Gross. With this pick, Philly gets the athletic 4 they're looking for.
17. Toronto - DeAndre Jordan: At this point, Toronto has lost out on their top (realistic) targets: Rush and Greene. In Jordan, they get a highly athletic big man with a sky-high ceiling (and a looooooow floor). Hey, he's gotta be better than Rasho Nesterovic.
18. Washington - Roy Hibbert: Brendan Haywood? More like Bendin' Gaywood, am I right? (Let's see Chad Ford give you analysis like that.) The Wizards need an upgrade at the 5 and the best left are JaVale McGee and local favorite Roy Hibbert. Neither big man has worked out for the Wizards as of today.
19. Cleveland - Kosta Koufos: Just like Washington, Cleveland is also in need of a center. And why wouldn't they go for the local favorite as well? That is, if they keep the pick. My (bulbous) gut tells me they'll be dealing this pick.
20. Denver - Courtney Lee: The Denver-Memphis swap of the #20 for Kyle Lowry and #28 sounds awfully plausible/imminent. Rumor has it that the Grizzlies have a mancrush on Lee.
21. New Jersey - Nicolas Batum: If the Nets keep both picks - which I don't expect - they'll be looking for the best available player with their second first-round pick. Batum is considered to be a bit of a project but he has the most upside of anyone available here hands down.
22. Orlando - Chris Douglas-Roberts: The Magic are in desperate need of a two guard but unfortunately for them it looks like Memphis will leapfrog them to get to Courtney Lee. The next best available shooting guard is Chris Douglas-Roberts who all things considered isn't a bad consolation prize this late in the draft.
23. Utah - Alexis Ajinca: From the looks of it, no one has improved his draft stock more than this guy in the last couple of weeks.
24. Seattle - Serge Ibaka: *sigh* When will the Sonics stop drafting big goofy looking motherfuckers who can't play?
25. Houston - Mario Chalmers: Chalmers is projected to go much lower than this, somewhere in the 2nd round. However, Rockets GM Daryl Morey is a stats geek, through and through. Amongst this year's draft prospects, Chalmers ranks #1 in steals (97), 11th in assist/turnover ratio (2.25) and boasts the best 3 point field goal percentage of any 1st round PG (47%). Rockets go Chalmers.
26. San Antonio - Jason Thompson: The Spurs are on the prowl for a center and Thompson is the only real gem amongst the other stiffs still available that play the 5.
27. New Orleans - Marreese Speights: They don't really have any major holes to fill, so they are free to take whoever is on the top of their board. At this point, Speights tops my list.
28. Memphis - Javale McGee: Remember, assuming the Memphis-Denver deal goes down, the Grizzlies are drafting for Denver here. With their point guard situation hypothetically cleared up (Lowry), they're free to fill their other major need - Center. Javale McGee is still available at this late juncture thanks to him being a lazy fuck with an inflated ego. McGee has been refusing to work out for teams outside of the top 12 despite not being all that good.
29. Detroit - Bill Walker: Walker hurt his knee in a workout last weekend but decided to stay in the draft after the Monday deadline. He's only worked out for two teams: Toronto (17) and Detroit, and #17 is a bit too high for an unproven underclassman with a history of injuries. He must have a promise in the first round and my best guess is that it's here.
30. Boston - JJ Hickson: He's been tearing it up in workouts..he could go 15 spots higher if draft day trades shake out in his favor.
On the bubble: DeVon Hardin, Nathan Jawai, Richard Hendrix, Joey Dorsey
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