NBA DRAFT: Where Potential Trumps Production

If you were the general manager of an NBA team and you had to choose, would you go for:

A) An unproven 19 year old who's 7'2" but is very raw skills-wise, has not had any international playing experience and barely makes a dent in the local basketball scene














Or

B) A 22 year old swingman who was recruited by US NCAA Division I colleges, won back-to-back collegiate MVP's and represented his country countless times in the international arena, even winning championships in regional tilts?

NBA DRAFT: The Good, The Okay, And The What?

THE GOOD
Wolves Picking Karl Anthony Towns - Makes the Wolves frontcourt the frontcourt of the future.
Lakers Picking D'Angelo Russell - Gets the ball into trustworthy hands who can make plays for himself and the rest of his team.
Kings Picking Willie Cauley Stein - Finds frontcourt partner for DMC and shores up both the PF position and team defense.
Heat Picking Justise Winslow - Heat snatched up the skidding Winslow and ended up with potentially the franchise's future cornerstone.

NBA DRAFT: Heat Pick Justise Winslow

Heat really lucked out.

Winslow should be an immediate contributor and should be ready to apprentice this year under Wade and Bosh, and then inherit the team in a couple of years.

NBA DRAFT: Hornets Pick Frank Kaminsky

I love Frank Kaminsky but I'm not sure how he fits with the Hornets.

The Hornets have a lot of big men who can really play so I'm guessing Michael Jordan will move either Cody Zeller, Bismack Biyombo, Spencer Hawes or Marvin Williams.

My guess is Zeller and/or Williams move for a shooting guard.

NBA DRAFT: Pistons Pick Stanley Johnson

Great pick for the Pistons.

It addresses their biggest need while leaving room for their young players like Drummond, Monroe, Caldwell-Pope, and Reggie Jackson to mature even more.

NBA DRAFT: Nuggets Pick Emmanuel M'Udiay

Good pick. Bye bye, Ty Lawson.

This pick means the Nuggets are rebuilding again, and they'd be ready to trade anyone on the roster.

NBA DRAFT: Kings Pick Willie Cauley-Stein

The Kings get the big man they need to help DeMarcus Cousins in the front court.

The Kings immediately improve their weakest position (PF) and have the chance to make a big jump defensively.

NBA DRAFT: Magic Select Mario Hezonja.

Wow. Another surprise in the first five picks.

Even before the Magic traded away Luke Ridnour, they already needed help at the PG position. And they had a surplus of forwards.

Adding Hezonja to the mix only means that the Magic are making more moves.

NBA DRAFT: Knicks Pick Kristaps Porzingis.

Not a surprise but slightly disappointing.

Knicks are hitting for the fences, banking on Porzingis to be the new Dirk Nowitzki. My problem is, he's got just a big a chance to be Andrea Bargnani, who's already on the Knicks.

NBA DRAFT: Sixers Pick Jahlil Okafor

Sixers are getting a really good big man and they should be happy. But don't think the Lakers did them any favors.

Now, the Sixers have to move one of their promising big men. Henry Sims is the most consistent but also has the least upside and talent. Embiid is injured (again) so his trade value has suffered but he will still bring something in. Nerlens Noel probably has the biggest trade value but he's also the most productive for the Sixers.

NBA DRAT: Lakers Pick D'Angleo Russell at #2

And we have our first surprise of the draft.

What does this mean? That the Lakers are are confident that they are getting a quality big man (through a trade, maybe?) or that they already have a quality big man (Randle? Davis?).

Russell is a solid pick and he answers a pressing Lakers need. Problem is, Lakers need help in all position.

 

NBA DRAFT: Wolves Pick Karl Anthony-Towns

No surprise there.

Rubio, Wiggins, and Towns will make the extremely Wolves exciting to watch.

WOMEN"s WORLD CUP: England Vs Norway Was All Kinds Of Awesome!

This game is tremendous. It's exciting, it shows off the immense skill level of the players and it certainly isn't boring.

Can't wait for England vs Canada. That should be a doozy.

WOMEN's WORLD CUP: Top Plays From the Round of 16

 I know, I know. I've been remiss by not covering the Women's World Cup. I apologize, Alex Morgan, Lauren Sesselmann and Julia Simic.

While i catch up on the games, here's the top ten moments of the Round of 16. And while I sort of agree with the top moment, I definitely think moment #5 and moment #4 should have gone #2 and #3 on the rankings.

Enjoy!

NBA DRAFT: Predictions on Picks 6 to 10

So we've gone through picks 1-5, now we move on to picks 6 to 10.

#6 Sacramento - Kristaps Porzingis. If the Knicks make the mistake of picking Porzingis up at #4, the Kings would be totally happy with Willie Cauley-Stein. But if it plays out the way I think it will, Porzingis is the best player available who can plug the most glaring weakness of the Kings: power forward. Jason Thompson is okay, Carl Landry is okay, even Rudy Gay is okay at PF. But Porzingis gives them the option of a sweet shooting stretch four who can be more than just okay. 

NBA DRAFT: Predictions on the Top Five Picks

The NBA Draft approaches and with, the drama of dreams being made and destroyed. Who will go where? Here are some thoughts.

#1 Minnesota Timberwolves - Karl-Anthony Towns. Why? They have a top ten assist man in Ricky Rubio, a dangerous enough shooter in Kevin Martin, a dynamic scorer in Andrew Wiggins, and a fundamentally solid center in Nikola Pekovic. Putting Karl-Anthony Towns at the PF position (learning under one of the best NBA PFs of all time, KG) will make the Wolves a darkhorse for the playoffs, even in the super loaded Western Conference.

NBA: The Top Three Reasons The Sacramento Kings Won't Trade Demarcus Cousins.

If the Sacramento Kings trade All Star and Team USA behemoth Demarcus Cousins, then they deserve to stay in the NBA cellar.

With Cousins averaging 24.1 points, 12.7 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.8 blocks, it's very hard to justify dealing him for anyone not named Lebron James, Steph Curry or Anthony Davis.

QUESTION: Is The Clippers New Unis Really Ugly?

Yes. Yes, it is.

And they know it too. Within hours of Clippers owner Steve Ballmer unveiling the new uniform designs, this video was released.