In what was already an underwhelming talent pool, more talk surrounded possible trades of NBA veterans for picks than the actual college prospects prior to the 7:30 tip off. There is a distinct possibility that these teams may be making their decisions to no avail, and the would-be franchise players of the 2011 draft class never come. Leave it to the city of Cleveland to somehow find a bad time to end up with two of the first four picks. Despite a less than star-studded affair, there were still plenty of opportunities for teams to create interesting storylines, smart decisions and, of course, monumental mistakes. An eager New Jersey crowd didn’t have to wait long to see the first management miscue; in fact, it came in the first five minutes.
The Cleveland Cavaliers were faced with choosing between Duke point guard Kyrie Irving and Arizona small forward Derrick Williams. Many agree that Williams is the better pure player, but in a point guard driven league, Irving proved to be too much to turn down. This pick leaves me with more than a few questions about when exactly Cleveland plans on winning their next championship. Irving played only eleven of Duke’s regular season games before missing the rest of the season with a foot injury, only returning to come off the bench in the NCAA tournament. Williams, on the other hand, proved to be one of the most effective and dominant players in the tournament. A guy with his size and power simply should not be allowed to shoot over 50% from three-point range, but he did. Despite this, I do acknowledge the need for a point guard. Luckily enough, there was a national champion with freakish athletic and leadership abilities who would be available for their fourth overall pick. My plan, as fictitious General Manager of the Cavs, would have been to take Williams with the first pick, and then to take UConn point guard Kemba Walker three picks later. If you are one of the Kemba doubters due to his lack of size, Kentucky’s Brandon Knight would have sufficed with this same pick. Walker’s experience and incredible resume validates his worth in my eyes. I have always prioritized winning over wingspan, but many professionals seemed to disagree with me tonight. After selecting freshman Tristan Thompson (Texas forward), my tandem’s experience is five years of college ball to the 1.5 compiled by Irving and Thompson. Irving already has a career altering injury at age 19, wearing a special shoe for his entire career, and has not done nearly enough to suggest he is the next Derrick Rose.
Nothing highlighted the lack of depth to this year’s draft class more than the percentage of imports. Four of the first seven picks were foreign players (don’t be fooled, Enes Kanter did not play for Kentucky due to athletic ineligibility). Relying on the international market is not good for the economy, and is certainly not good for basketball. Either scenario suggests the lack of substance we have here. On the topic of these international prospects, I found the most promising to be Jan Vesely. His athleticism and leaping ability (he’s been referred to as the European Blake Griffin) translate well to the American game. He also has respectable enough range to make him a versatile weapon. Europeans typically rely on their jump shots to a fault; there’s a reason Dirk Nowitzki is the first to break into the all-time-greats conversation. Since the 2011 draft hasn’t exactly been 2003, predicting the value picks and steals isn’t something anyone is about to bet good money on. However, one move did strike me as almost too strange to be a bad one. The San Antonio Spurs traded away George Hill, who they absolutely love in the role that lets Parker and Ginobli catch a few breathers, to Indiana for their selection of Kawhi Leonard from San Diego State. As Jeff Van Gundy pointed out, the Spurs are one of those organizations that would not make such a move without knowing something that we simply do not know. From what I saw from an under the radar San Diego State season and the feeling that there’s something behind this, I’d keep an eye on Leonard potentially revitalizing the San Antonio franchise if this transaction is completed.
After watching the Morris twins being sadly taken from me, I pulled for my Knicks to take the undersized beast of a center, Kenneth Faried. You may remember him as that wall that Louisville failed to climb in the first round of last year’s tournament. Ironically enough, he was selected by the Denver Nuggets, who continue to drain talent from the Knicks franchise. Lastly, we have gone this far without rating the selection of the draft’s biggest story, Jimmer Fredette. I do not doubt his ability to play in the NBA; the only shame is he's being shipped off to Sacramento to a franchise that may belong to any given city within the next few years and is at best the third most relevant team in its state. Jimmer is the best shooter in the draft, and has an underrated ability to drive to the basket and finish well inside. It has become more popular to question his defensive ability. On a more defensive note, I watched Jason Kidd guard Lebron James for six games. As Kevin Garnett once said, “ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE”.
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