By Zach Harper - Email Zach
First Round
1. Portland Trailblazers- Greg Oden, C, Ohio State
Still the guy at number 1. His athleticism was finally measured at the pre-draft testing, and all it did was put a seal on his selection. He was probably a lock here anyway, but now there’s no question that Durant won’t be the first guy taken. NBA Comparison- David Robinson
2. Seattle Supersonics- Kevin Durant is apparently the least athletic player of the 78 guys tested this past week. Unless, he has become Spencer Hawes, I really believe that this is being over talked analyzed (What a surprise in today’s media). This guy can flat out ball. So he can’t bench press 185 lbs. Can he throw a 2 lb ball at a hoop 30 times a night? That’s all Seattle needs to know. NBA Comparison- Tracy McGrady
3. Atlanta Hawks- Yi Jianlin, F, China
Billy Knight SHOULD take Conley here. I don’t care if they think 3 is too high for him. He is by far the best point guard in the draft and will be a fantastic floor general for the next 12 years. They’ll go with the player with the most potential here. Yi can play and only needs a season or two of getting his ass kicked to adapt to the NBA. NBA Comparison- Dirk Nowitzki
4. Memphis Grizzlies- Al Horford, PF, Florida
Horford is their guy here at #4. He’s big, strong and can score facing the basket a little. He’ll be an immediate impact player and will get plenty of minutes along side Hakim Warrick and Pau Gasol to become a good solid starter for the next 10 years. NBA Comparison- Elton Brand
5. Boston Celtics- Brandon Wright, PF, North Carolina
Boston wants Yi here but he won’t be on the board so they’ll panic and go with Wright. This selection is only in hopes of packaging him with Theo Ratliff’s and Sebastian Telfair’s expiring contracts for an All Star veteran. NBA Comparison- LaMarcus Aldridge
6. Milwaukee Bucks- Mike Conley Jr., PG, Ohio State
Maurice Williams is a free agent and made himself plenty of money last season. So a much cheaper and better way to fill the position is to grab Conley here. Atlanta made a mistake by not selecting him and the Bucks will benefit from it. NBA Comparison- Kenny Anderson
7. Minnesota Timberwolves- Joakim Noah, C, Florida
Randy Wittman spoke the other day about how much he loved Noah and Spencer Hawes. That almost made me instantly hand in my T’Wolves’ fan resignation letters. I’m now praying for Noah. That’s how bad this franchise has become. NBA Comparison- Anderson Varajaeo
8. Charlotte Bobcats- Corey Brewer, SG, Florida
This would be the dream situation for Charlotte. They’re praying for Brewer to fall here or if he’s taken they’ll go for option 2 which would be Al Thornton. Since Brewer falls here, MJ has to select him and run him alongside Raymond Felton. NBA Comparison- Tayshaun Prince as a SG
9. Chicago Bulls (from New York)- Spencer Hawes, C, Washington
I can’t believe Chicago is going to screw this pick up so badly. They could take an immediate impact player like Julian Wright or Al Thornton and use Luol Deng and others as trade bait. Instead, they want a post player in the draft and will grab Hawes instead of signing Chris Mihm for the minimum. NBA Comparison- Chris Mihm
10. Sacramento Kings- Al Thornton, SF, Florida State
I originally thought that they’d take Julian Wright, but Thornton has taken the pre-draft workouts by storm. He is annihilating the competition and is a lock for top-10 now. This guy will come in and score for the Kings right away. This easily allows them to take lesser value for Ron Artest. NBA Comparison- Danny Granger
11. Atlanta Hawks (from Indiana)- Javaris Crittenton, PG, Georgia Tech
Atlanta is gambling here with going big early and taking a less proven point guard at this point in the draft. Acie Law IV is a better point guard right now, but Javaris has greater potential. They’ll hope he can supplant Speedy Claxton as the starter by February. NBA Comparison- Steve Francis
12. Philadelphia 76ers- Julian Wright, SF, Kansas
This is a dream situation for the Sixers. Wright is a top 5 talent that is stuck in a loaded draft. If he went back to school and had a good year, he’d be one of the first two guys selected next year. Instead he falls to late lottery here and makes Sixers’ fans very happy. He’ll be great alongside Iggy. NBA Comparison- Boris Diaw
13. New Orleans Hornets- Jeff Green, SF, Georgetown
The Hornets are hoping for Thornton to fall here but they’ll gladly “settle” for Jeff Green if he stays in the draft. His playmaking ability will allow Chris Paul to become more of a scorer and gives them plenty of weapons on offense next year. NBA Comparison- Josh Howard
14. Los Angeles Clippers- Acie Law IV, PG, Texas A&M
Still the guy here at the end of the lottery for the Clippers. They need a veteran type point guard that can run a team and get everybody shots and does his best work scoring when it counts the most. Sam Cassell will turn this guy into a 15 year starter. NBA Comparison- Sam Cassell
15. Detroit Pistons (from Orlando)- Rodney Stuckey, SG, Eastern Washington
He’s proven enough in workouts and pre-draft testing that he can flat out play. He has a much better outside game than most thought originally and will be a welcome addition to the back court rotation of the Pistons. NBA Comparison- Randy Foye
16. Washington Wizards- Thaddeus Young, SF, Georgia Tech
I’m not big on this guy because of his attitude and many GMs feel the same way. He just doesn’t seem to have the passion to succeed at a high level in the NBA. He has all the talent in the world and was supposed to be the Kevin Durant of this draft before anyone knew who Kevin Durant was. Wizards will take a chance on his potential. NBA Comparison- Al Harrington
17. New Jersey Nets- Jason Smith, PF, Colorado State
Smith continues to impress scouts and GMs with his athletic ability and his shooting touch. He could easily be a top 10 draft pick in next year’s draft. Nets love him to fall here because they have no help in the front court and will be able to utilize him in their running game immediately. NBA Comparison- Brian Cook
18. Golden State Warriors- Sean Williams, C, Boston College
The best shot blocker in this draft and athletic enough to run with Nellie’s boys. He’ll be a welcome addition to the Warriors because he can run the floor, block shots, and fit right in with Stephen Jackson. That last reason isn’t a good thing. NBA Comparison- Samuel Dalembert
19. Los Angeles Lakers- Nick Young, SG, USC
They already have Kobe so Nick Young doesn’t really fit in here but he will be great trade bait in hopes of bringing another top notch player over to play with KB24. Young has great potential to be a star in this league and was very impressive with his workouts and test results. His 40 inch vertical has a lot of teams drooling. NBA Comparison- J.R. Smith
20. Miami Heat- Gabe Pruitt, PG, USC
Miami is dying to get a point guard at #20, and may even try to move Jason Williams expiring contract and bad knees to get it done higher up in the draft. Worst case scenario for them is Pruitt falling here at #20 which would also be a great situation for the Heat. NBA Comparison- Devin Harris
21. Philadelphia 76ers (from Denver)- Glen Davis, PF, LSU
Billy Knight has fallen in love with Davis and will most likely select him here to ensure that he gets him. Davis is probably someone that will fall to #30 where Philly is also selecting but they take that chance of letting him get plucked by another team. Great pick if he can keep his weight under control. NBA Comparison- Robert “Tractor” Traylor
22. Charlotte Bobcats (from Toronto via Cleveland)- Morris Almond, SG, Rice
You can never have too many shooters and with Matt Carroll possibly not re-signing with the Bobs, they’ll gladly take an insurance policy here. Morris is arguably the best shooter in this draft and will be an instant impact player for Charlotte. NBA Comparison- Allan Houston
23. New York Knicks (from Chicago)- Daequan Cook, SG, Ohio State
Just like Cuttino “Cat Don’t Care” Mobley, Cook don’t care either. He will shoot it from any distance at any time. Isaiah Thomas loves Cook’s upside and his ability to score the ball. He’ll have to fit in with the other 87 guards on this roster, but he’ll be able to carve his way into the rotation eventually. NBA Comparison- Cuttino Mobley
24. Phoenix Suns (from Cleveland via Boston)- Derrick Byars, SF, Vanderbilt
This guy will fit in perfectly with Phoenix’ running style. He loves to shoot and can play multiple positions. With Steve Nash setting him up for wide open looks, he’ll probably be a threat to make the All Rookie 2nd team or higher. NBA Comparison- Raja Bell
25. Utah Jazz- Taurean Green, PG, Utah Jazz
Green might have played his way into the first round with all of the pre-draft activities that he’s excelled in. The Jazz need someone to spell Deron Williams and Derek Fisher in the back court while still leaving them with a playmaker on the floor. Green will do this better than Dee Brown can. NBA Comparison- Dee Brown
26. Houston Rockets- Ali Traore, PF, France
This is a guy that a lot of GMs are hoping the other GMs are sleeping on. Most teams think they can grab him early in the second round but Houston will take him on and pair him with Yao Ming down low. He is a great post scorer and will give the Rockets another weapon in the half court offense. NBA Comparison- Nene
27. Detroit Pistons- Devon Hardin, C, Cal-Berkeley
Still have Hardin going here with the Pistons because of his size and rebounding ability. Detroit proved in the playoffs that their front court is actually quite thin and overrated and they’ll try to beef that up with their second first round selection. NBA Comparison- Steven Hunter
28. San Antonio Spurs- Petteri Koponen, PG, Finland
Pop still hates Beno and Jacque Vaughn isn’t the answer as the backup. Petteri is a much better decision maker than Beno ever was and will only grow with experience. Pop will turn him into a great backup for Monsieur Longoria. NBA Comparison- Beno Udrih
29. Phoenix Suns- Marco Belinelli, SG, Italy
D’Antoni loves Italian players and will be able to keep this guy overseas for a season or two while they try to lower their luxury tax payment. He’s one of the top shooters in this draft and will be a welcome addition some day in Phoenix. NBA Comparison- Gordan Giricek
30. Philadelphia 76ers (from Dallas via Golden State and Denver)- Tiago Splitter, PF, Brazil
This guy has been in the draft for the past 4 years but has pulled out every time. Well, by rule, he has to stay in this year and Philly will take a chance on him with their 3rd pick of the first round. He can be pretty versatile but his toughness will be tested every game. NBA Comparison- P.J. Brown