Bobcats, Pelicans, 76ers, Oh My!

Man, look at that nose

The NBA Draft was one week ago and after finally digesting all that happened, it’s finally time for me to review some of the picks. There were clearly some major losers in this draft, but also some teams had very solid picks in what was considered to be a poor quality draft.

With the surprise pick of Anthony Bennett to the Cavaliers at the first overall pick, followed by Victor Oladipo and Otto Porter Jr, the Bobcats had the fourth overall selection in the draft. Still on the board was Ben McLemore, the stud out of Kansas who was considered by many to be the best prospect in the draft. Along with McLemore was Nerlens Noel, the 7-footer out of Kentucky, who was expected by most analysts to be the 1^st overall selection by the Cavaliers. Looking at the Bobcats, it’s obvious that they wouldn’t be able to solve all of their problems with one pick, especially in this draft. They do have some rising talent in Kemba Walker and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, but no interior presence to speak of. This led to the decision by management to take Cody Zeller, the big man out of Indiana. Zeller runs the floor well and has good touch around the basket, but even in college basketball he struggled to finish through contact. To expect him to go up against NBA centers is nothing but a pipe dream.

Jrue Holiday, with one of
the best names in the NBA

 In poor drafts like this one I always think that it’s best to take the best overall player rather than to fill a need. I don’t even consider it  “filling a need” if the player is going to have to be replaced anyway. A guy like Ben McLemore has deep NBA range and great athleticism. He will be able to come into the NBA and score right away with his exceptional shooting stroke. The ceiling for McLemore is the highest out of any player in this draft. Most of the players in the draft are going to be flops anyway; you might as well pick the player with the most potential.

Michael Carter-Williams as he
knocks off top ranked Louisville

One of the most interesting picks was made by the New Orleans Pelicans. They chose Nerlens Noel 6^th overall and used him as trade bait. The 76ers ended up with Nerlens Noel and a top-5 protected pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, while the Pelicans got All-Star Jrue Holiday and the 42^nd overall pick, Pierre Jackson. I really think that the Pelicans came out on top in this trade, getting a solidified point guard in Jrue Holiday, and a really good sleeper pick in Pierre Jackson. If I were a 76ers fan, I wouldn’t be too excited about the top 5 pick in next year’s draft as it probably won’t come to fruition.

The 76ers are obviously placing all of their faith in Michael Carter-Williams, the former Syracuse point-man who was third in the nation in assists. Carter-Williams has the size and length to be a great defender in the NBA, but at times Louisville pressure caused him to turn the ball over at an outrageous clip. Carter-Williams won’t have to deal with full court pressure like that in the NBA, but he needs to adjust to the length of NBA defenders if he wants to stay in the league.