**Official NBA Draft Thread**

[Boston 0]

I think he's a steal. Lottery pick last year. Committed to losing weight and got in nice shape. Had some injury issues and played with a lot less talent, but still showed what he can do. Big body, nice low post offensive skill set. Good aquisition.

 

 

I think it's a bonus that he fell into the second round. He doesn't get the guaranteed money which means he'll have to work hard to eventally get his payday. If his head is on straight and he's committed to being a pro he should be able to carve out a nice niche from himself. As far as the C's are concerned he's a guy that could really help them because they need to get much more tougher down low.

[Willie McGee 0]

My reaction to the Celtics moves was relief. Al Jefferson is still on this team.

 

Adding Ray Allen is a clear indication that they are going to try to win now. Not sure of the fit with he and Pierce playing the same position, but I must admit a Pierce-Allen-Jefferson trio look's pretty good - especially in the East. I definitely like the addition of Big Baby. He's the type of guy who can step in and contribute right away as part of rotation. Looking at the roster now there has got be another move in the works.

 

Pierce

Rondo

RAllen

Jefferson

Gomes

TAllen

GGreen

KPerkins

GDavis

GPruitt

LPowe

TRatliff

STelfair

 

GGreen or TAllen and Ratliff's cotract for another veteran?

[Boston 0]

I can't believe that the Blazers couldn't get a better deal. Great low-post scorers don't grow on trees. The Bulls couldn't put together something more enticing?

 

Randolph has a very questionable character and a bad contract. There aren't many teams that would or should be interested in him. This is a typical Knick move. I think Frye is a great pickup for Portland. With Oden and Roy onboard he will fill a very nice role for them. He's not an all star (and portland doesn't need him to be one) but should be very productive. The Blazers now have three young and talented players that are over 6'10". That's a very nice foundation to build around.

 

My reaction to the Celtics moves was relief. Al Jefferson is still on this team.

 

Adding Ray Allen is a clear indication that they are going to try to win now. Not sure of the fit with he and Pierce playing the same position, but I must admit a Pierce-Allen-Jefferson trio look's pretty good - especially in the East. I definitely like the addition of Big Baby. He's the type of guy who can step in and contribute right away as part of rotation. Looking at the roster now there has got be another move in the works.

 

Pierce

Rondo

RAllen

Jefferson

Gomes

TAllen

GGreen

KPerkins

GDavis

GPruitt

LPowe

TRatliff

STelfair

 

GGreen or TAllen and Ratliff's cotract for another veteran?

 

I would be absolutely shocked if they don't make another move and I totally agree that Green and Theo's contract will probably be the bait. I'd love to seem them add a real hardnosed defender that comes with some attitude. Also, a veteran point guard would help this team as well. Rondo has a chance to be a good one but I'd feel better if they had another option to go along with him. Right now if he he got hurt or does not develop as we feel he will the C's would really have some exposure.

[JT 137]

My reaction to the Celtics moves was relief. Al Jefferson is still on this team.

 

Adding Ray Allen is a clear indication that they are going to try to win now. Not sure of the fit with he and Pierce playing the same position, but I must admit a Pierce-Allen-Jefferson trio look's pretty good - especially in the East. I definitely like the addition of Big Baby. He's the type of guy who can step in and contribute right away as part of rotation. Looking at the roster now there has got be another move in the works.

 

Pierce

Rondo

RAllen

Jefferson

Gomes

TAllen

GGreen

KPerkins

GDavis

GPruitt

LPowe

TRatliff

STelfair

 

GGreen or TAllen and Ratliff's cotract for another veteran?

 

What's the word there on Tony Allen? Is he going to play again? Thats a bad injury, and came just as he was showing the type player he could become.

[Boston 0]

What's the word there on Tony Allen? Is he going to play again? Thats a bad injury, and came just as he was showing the type player he could become.

 

The word is the recovery is going well physically and is on target to play this year. Yet, with that injury there's often a mental aspect to it and you really won't know that side of things until the season starts. Hopefully he'll be back to the type of player he looked like he was developing into. The C's really need some help defensively and he's a guy that can help on that end.

[KSB2424 3,174]

O OO

I got more:

4. Give Monta Ellis a chance to start and get more PT

5. Have an excuse for a retarded #36 pick

6. Chance to bring Pietrus back as well

7. Have one of the most dynamic young teams in the league.

 

BDavis, Ellis, Steven Jackson, Al Harrington, Biedrens, Wright

----------------------------------

 

I fear MJ is going to ruin the Bobcats as he did the Wizards. Charlotte was an up and coming franchise that was under the salary cap and had a good nucleus of young guys. (Wallace, Okafor, Felton). So instead of keeping Brandan Wright or drafting an Al Thornton/Noah to continue the up and coming trend, MJ trades for a guy that relies alot on his athleticism and is coming off MAJOR knee surgery. And most importantly he is due 51 million over the next 4 years.

 

The Bobcats may win a few more games next year if they can also re-sign Wallace, but when they can't extend Emeka or re-sign Felton in two years because of this deal, they will be right back in the lottery.

[GeminiV 0]

Randolph has a very questionable character and a bad contract. There aren't many teams that would or should be interested in him. This is a typical Knick move. I think Frye is a great pickup for Portland. With Oden and Roy onboard he will fill a very nice role for them. He's not an all star (and portland doesn't need him to be one) but should be very productive. The Blazers now have three young and talented players that are over 6'10". That's a very nice foundation to build around.

 

Unless they play one of Aldridge, Oden, or Frye out of position at SF, they've essentially traded a 23-10 guy for two back-ups. I think Kevin Pritchard (Portland GM) just completely mishandled the situation. Everyone knew that he was desperate to move Randolph and there was plenty of time to pick apart Randolph's shortcomings (character, defense). Had Pritchard played his cards closer to the vest, I think he would've had an easier time selling Randolph to some hurried team on draft day. Heck, I'm sure if Ainge had more than a day to think about it, he might've had doubts about trading the #5 pick for a 32-year-old shooting guard with two repaired ankles.

 

----------------------------------

 

I fear MJ is going to ruin the Bobcats as he did the Wizards. Charlotte was an up and coming franchise that was under the salary cap and had a good nucleus of young guys. (Wallace, Okafor, Felton). So instead of keeping Brandan Wright or drafting an Al Thornton/Noah to continue the up and coming trend, MJ trades for a guy that relies alot on his athleticism and is coming off MAJOR knee surgery. And most importantly he is due 51 million over the next 4 years.

 

The Bobcats may win a few more games next year if they can also re-sign Wallace, but when they can't extend Emeka or re-sign Felton in two years because of this deal, they will be right back in the lottery.

 

On the plus side for the Bobcats, Richardson is an extremely hard worker and classy guy. Before the injury, he was improving every season, developing into a really solid outside shooter and rebounder as well as dunker. If I had to bet on anyone recovering from knee surgery and coming back better than before, it'd be him.

 

And if the Bobcats miss the playoffs, maybe he'll buy a full-page spread in the paper to apologize like he did for the Warriors.

[Boston 0]

Unless they play one of Aldridge, Oden, or Frye out of position at SF, they've essentially traded a 23-10 guy for two back-ups. I think Kevin Pritchard (Portland GM) just completely mishandled the situation. Everyone knew that he was desperate to move Randolph and there was plenty of time to pick apart Randolph's shortcomings (character, defense). Had Pritchard played his cards closer to the vest, I think he would've had an easier time selling Randolph to some hurried team on draft day. Heck, I'm sure if Ainge had more than a day to think about it, he might've had doubts about trading the #5 pick for a 32-year-old shooting guard with two repaired ankles.

On the plus side for the Bobcats, Richardson is an extremely hard worker and classy guy. Before the injury, he was improving every season, developing into a really solid outside shooter and rebounder as well as dunker. If I had to bet on anyone recovering from knee surgery and coming back better than before, it'd be him.

 

And if the Bobcats miss the playoffs, maybe he'll buy a full-page spread in the paper to apologize like he did for the Warriors.

 

I really disagree about Randolph. He's not a guy with a lot of value. He's a stat guy but is way overpaid and not guy noted for his character. For a team rebuilding he's exactly the type of guy you don't want around. Fortunately for Portland the Knicks make a business of obtaining these type of guys.

 

As for Portland in general you're looking way to short term. They won't be contenders overnight. They are obtaining some real nice pieces that they will be able to sort out in the next year or two. They than can decide which guys they want to keep and which guys to deal to get them to the next level. The NBA is very difficult to rebuild in, it's not a clean process. Right now Portland is putting themselves in a position to be a legit contender in a few years and they are on the right path.

[RicemanX 20]

And what is with Yi trying to pull an "Eli Manning" on the Bucks?

Now someone has to give a first round next year, plus a great player to rescue him from Milwakee

[KSB2424 3,174]

Ray Allen passes to Allan Ray, back to Ray Allen for the jump shot. Rebond by Tony Allen who kicks it out to Allan Ray. Tommy Heinsohn is going to have an aneurism.

[Team Revell 1]

I totally agree with Boston's take on the deal for the Celtics.

 

The move placates Pierce and makes him happy, sheds Wally's salary, and makes the team a contender for the Atlantic Division title.

 

Allen is the perfect complement to Pierce's slashing game, and they didn't give up any of their untouchable young pieces in the deal.

 

They aren't going to win a chip. But it will make them a decent team instead of a horrendous one, and unless you believe Jeff Green is going to be an All-Star the deal is great for them. They get to make the playoffs the next few years while Jefferson, Rondo, Perkins, and Green continue to grow.

 

I don't think this does anything to impede Green's growth. He isn't ready to be a starter and is a perfect sixth man coming off the bench.

 

Unless they play one of Aldridge, Oden, or Frye out of position at SF, they've essentially traded a 23-10 guy for two back-ups. I think Kevin Pritchard (Portland GM) just completely mishandled the situation. Everyone knew that he was desperate to move Randolph and there was plenty of time to pick apart Randolph's shortcomings (character, defense). Had Pritchard played his cards closer to the vest, I think he would've had an easier time selling Randolph to some hurried team on draft day. Heck, I'm sure if Ainge had more than a day to think about it, he might've had doubts about trading the #5 pick for a 32-year-old shooting guard with two repaired ankles.

On the plus side for the Bobcats, Richardson is an extremely hard worker and classy guy. Before the injury, he was improving every season, developing into a really solid outside shooter and rebounder as well as dunker. If I had to bet on anyone recovering from knee surgery and coming back better than before, it'd be him.

 

And if the Bobcats miss the playoffs, maybe he'll buy a full-page spread in the paper to apologize like he did for the Warriors.

 

I totally agree with your take on Randolph as well.

 

Portland frees up cap space and room for Aldridge in their front court.

 

They are set with two good young PGs, Oden and Aldridge, and Brandon Roy. If they can sign a dynamic scoring three, they could contend for the chip in 2 or 3 years.

[RicemanX 20]

Ray Allen passes to Allan Ray, back to Ray Allen for the jump shot. Rebond by Tony Allen who kicks it out to Allan Ray. Tommy Heinsohn is going to have an aneurism.

lol

Ray Allen to Allan Ray, down to the post to Tony Allen, throw up an alley-oop to Sugar Ray Leonard...?

[GeminiV 0]

I really disagree about Randolph. He's not a guy with a lot of value. He's a stat guy but is way overpaid and not guy noted for his character. For a team rebuilding he's exactly the type of guy you don't want around. Fortunately for Portland the Knicks make a business of obtaining these type of guys.

 

As for Portland in general you're looking way to short term. They won't be contenders overnight. They are obtaining some real nice pieces that they will be able to sort out in the next year or two. They than can decide which guys they want to keep and which guys to deal to get them to the next level. The NBA is very difficult to rebuild in, it's not a clean process. Right now Portland is putting themselves in a position to be a legit contender in a few years and they are on the right path.

 

I'm not saying Portland shouldn't have traded Randolph eventually. Clearly, he wasn't in their long-term plans. But Francis has less than no value and Frye regressed in his second season. They probably could've deactivated Randolph for an entire season waiting for a better deal and still done no worse than that. And I still think that some team would've come calling mid-season about Randolph, warts and all, trying to add some firepower for a playoff run.

 

Rebuilding is a slow process, but it gets even slower when you lose value in trades.

[KSB2424 3,174]

The over/under from Vegas for Randolph to get arrested in New York is set at 14 months. I like the under.

[Cdub100 3,995]

The over/under from Vegas for Randolph to get arrested in New York is set at 14 months. I like the under.

 

Hell I would that the under on 14 DAYS

[Boston 0]

I'm not saying Portland shouldn't have traded Randolph eventually. Clearly, he wasn't in their long-term plans. But Francis has less than no value and Frye regressed in his second season. They probably could've deactivated Randolph for an entire season waiting for a better deal and still done no worse than that. And I still think that some team would've come calling mid-season about Randolph, warts and all, trying to add some firepower for a playoff run.

 

Rebuilding is a slow process, but it gets even slower when you lose value in trades.

 

We'll have to agree to disagree. Removing Randoplh from the young kids as well as getting rid of his bad contract is a step forward for Portland. From a pure financial standpoint getting Randolph off the books is a huge move for the Blazers that will pay dividends within a few years. As for Frye he's a quality big man (he's not a star) who will help them and Francis will actually have some value soon due to the status of his contract. I just don't see how you were going to get anything more for Randolph with how many years he had left on his deal. That contract is an albatross and only a badly run franchise like the Knicks would be willing to take it on.

[GeminiV 0]

We'll have to agree to disagree. Removing Randoplh from the young kids as well as getting rid of his bad contract is a step forward for Portland. From a pure financial standpoint getting Randolph off the books is a huge move for the Blazers that will pay dividends within a few years. As for Frye he's a quality big man (he's not a star) who will help them and Francis will actually have some value soon due to the status of his contract. I just don't see how you were going to get anything more for Randolph with how many years he had left on his deal. That contract is an albatross and only a badly run franchise like the Knicks would be willing to take it on.

 

I don't think we're entirely disagreeing. We just view some aspects of this differently. For one thing, you seem to think badly-run franchises are a rarity in the league. I think there's a sucker born every minute and a team with no pressure to win immediately has the luxury of waiting for that sucker.

[RicemanX 20]

Jumping in on the Randolph thing. I think on paper, the Blazers got screwed. Franchise is a lost cause and Frye is an average center/PF.

 

However, reading from an article, I think the Blazers didn't even want Randolph to meet Oden.

Randolph = bad example for Oden, McRoberts, Roy, Jack, etc.

 

Good to get rid of bad seeds, no matter how many points they can get you a night

[KSB2424 3,174]

If Steve Francis has anything left in the tank their starting 5 is pretty impressive not to mention a young and deeeep bench. Portland is doing big things.

 

Jack

Francis

Roy

Aldridge

Oden

--------------

 

Channing Frye

McRoberts

T.Outlaw

Udoka

Webster

R.Fernandez

T.Green

[DBZFan2K 0]

Understood, but in the NBA, you can't play more than one offensive liability at a time.

 

True. Though Rondo's offensive game was picking up in the final month. In any case, Williams is a Net now. The Celtics should look to trade for Kirilenko.

[JT 137]

If Steve Francis has anything left in the tank their starting 5 is pretty impressive not to mention a young and deeeep bench. Portland is doing big things.

 

Jack

Francis

Roy

Aldridge

Oden

--------------

 

Channing Frye

McRoberts

T.Outlaw

Udoka

Webster

R.Fernandez

T.Green

 

They've got a ways to go. Nowhere remotely close to a playoff team yet. You're not going anywhere with Jack and Francis as your backcourt. They have to find out if Outlaw can play and really contribute at this level; same with Webster.

 

Right now, Roy's your best player and Francis is your steadying veteran influence. That don't sound too good.

 

I do like the addition of Frye; he'll take some of the pressure off Oden, and even looked last year like he might score once in a while on something other than an accident.

 

 

True. Though Rondo's offensive game was picking up in the final month. In any case, Williams is a Net now. The Celtics should look to trade for Kirilenko.

 

He would be a great fit for that team.

[BMoney 0]

And what is with Yi trying to pull an "Eli Manning" on the Bucks?

Now someone has to give a first round next year, plus a great player to rescue him from Milwakee

 

 

i looked up the meaning of his name....

 

its Chinese for gary sheffield

 

gary didnt want to be in milwaukee either and he threw balls into the stands until he was dealt....

 

yi hung low will do the same thing...

 

 

(not that i will notice since the NHL will be going on )

[Chronic Husker 86]

Lots of great stuff in this thread.