Archive for June 29th, 2012

WATERCOOLER CHAT: NBA DRAFT NIGHT

BASKETBALL

 

In the NBA, it was the NBA Draft.  And the first person to go is Kentucky big man Anthony Davis heading to the New Orleans Hornets.   Davis is a freak of nature and one of those players who doesn’t come along very often.  He’s 6’11 and can essentially block any shot that comes near him.  In addition, he moves like a small forward, with the ability to move up and down the floor very quickly.  He’s known for his now trademarked UniBrow — a superficial quality that he uses to intimidate players and… stand out (nobody’s marketed themselves as having a unibrow any time recently.  That should help him secure some sponsorships (the same way Brandon Jennings from Milwaukee dyes his hair all kinds of crazy colors).

Then, with all the trade rumors surrounding the Charlotte Bobcats #2 pick, everyone anticipated what would happen.  Most thought that they would trade it to the Cavaliers in exchange for a later pick.  Plus, in this draft that is so top heavy — the guy you get at #4 isn’t exactly too different than who you can get at #2.  But, after all that suspense, the Bobcats wound up keeping the pick, selecting Kentucky’s Michael Kidd-Gilchrist.  Kidd-Gilchrist is a fantastic young player with high energy who will be a big part of Charlotte’s rebuilding effort.  Plus, that’s two Kentucky players picked #1 and #2.

Then, at #3, the Washington Wizards found a back-court teammate for their franchise star John Wall, selecting Bradley Beal out of Florida.  Then, at #4, the Cavs surprised everyone by taking Syracuse’s Dion Waiters a few picks earlier than expected.  That will also give the Cavs a solid back court.

At #5, the Sacramento Kings finally took Kansas forward Thomas Robinson off the board.  Robinson was one of the most sympathetic players in the draft.  In just a few short months, he lost his mother and both of his grandparents, leaving him to look after his little sister.  Now, Robinson will apply for legal guardian status of his sister.

The rest of the Top 10 was filled out with Detroit taking upside big man Andre Drummond from UCONN to create a potential dominate front court of Drummond and emerging star Greg Monroe.  And then, the New Orleans Hornets selected Duke’s Austin Rivers (son of Celtics coach Doc Rivers) with the #10 pick.  Rivers received a lot of flack prior to the draft for having an ego, but the Hornets took a chance on that giving them a nice trio of Anthony Davis, Austin Rivers, and emerging star Eric Gordon.  That immediately makes them an interesting/watchable team in the West all of the sudden.

Now… can any of these guys help stop LeBron?

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