NBA 2014 DRAFT PREDICTIONS

[Kevin]

Rules are simple:
-Just give us your predictions of this year's draft picks.
-Minimal of top 5, maximum of 15 picks.

These are my predicitions:
1. Cavs - Andrew Wiggins
-Can play both forward and shooting guard (which the Cavs needs)
-A "good" defender
-promising talent and upsides

2.Bucks - Jabari Parker
-Can partner up with Giannis and dominate(?) the game with their athleticism.
-Can shoot the ball with consistency.

3.76ers - Noah Vonleh
- His draft stock MAY increase because of Embiid's foot and back problem.

4.Magic - Dante Exum
-Pairing up with Oladipo seems a pretty decent idea for me.

5.Jazz - Julius Randle
-Makes a scary front court of Favors and him plus Burke and Hayward, might put up a fight in the West.

6.Celtics - Joel Embiid (Yes, Embiid)
- Put him there because of his latest foot surgery AND because Rondo needs a new Garnett, plus paired with Love (maybe), = RINGS.

7.Lakers - Marcus Smart
- You might think I'm crazy with this pick buuuuuut, I think its a perfect fit.
- Definitely a playmaker and a good defender.

[Sauru]

i would be ok with these results

[JaoSming]

1. Emiid
2. Parker
3. Wiggins
4. Smart
5. Exum
6. Traded
7. Some loser

[Andrew]

I'll pick the lottery, and take a wild guess on Emiid's stock plummeting due to his recent surgery.

1. Andrew Wiggins
2. Jabari Parker
3. Noah Vonleh
4. Marcus Smart
5. Dante Exum
6. Julius Randle
7. Aaron Gordon
8. Rodney Hood
9. Gary Harris
10. Nik Stauskas
11. Dario Saric
12. Joel Embiid
13. Zach LaVine
14. Doug McDermott

[NovU]

I told you. Either Celtics or Lakers will hit the jackpot from the draft this offseason. Embiid's agent will choose and be picky which team will get what info. His agent probably will leak all the negative news to stupid teams while the Celtics get to hear some lovely things.

TIME TO BLEED GREEN!

[Kevin]

Embiid's draft stock will probably go down with his recent surgery.
Look at what the Cavs did last year, picked Bennett with their first pick and he ended up as a bust for them.

[Sauru]

I told you. Either Celtics or Lakers will hit the jackpot from the draft this offseason. Embiid's agent will choose and be picky which team will get what info. His agent probably will leak all the negative news to stupid teams while the Celtics get to hear some lovely things.

TIME TO BLEED GREEN!

if embiid is there at 6 they better take him. worth the risk at 6 for sure

[shadowgrin]

lol Celtics fans are that desperate.

[benji]

I think the Cavs are going to nab Isaiah Austin with the first pick. 7 foot 1 is hard to argue with.

[Andrew]

Probably not. Tough break for him.

[_Steve_]

Probably not. Tough break for him.

Read about that too yesterday. Wish the kid all the best.

[rise]

Here my mock lottery:
Cleveland - Wiggins
Milwaukee - Exum
Philly - Parker
Orlando - Vonleh
Utah - Randle
Boston - Embiid
LA - Smart
Sac - Gordon
Charlotte - McDermott
Philly - LaVine
Denver - Stauskas
Orlando - Harris
Minny - Warren
Phoenix - Saric

[chaim]

There is no way Embiid falls out of top 3. Mark my words.

1. Parker
2. Embiid
3. Wiggins
4. Exum
5. Randle
6. Gordon
7. Smart

[Lamrock]

Okay, I'll give it a shot.

1. Cleveland - Andrew Wiggins | I hear they like Parker here but Wiggins has higher upside, while Parker shares some of the same weaknesses Bennett has
2. Milwaukee - Jabari Parker | A lot of people have Exum in this spot, but I think they take the safe route and grab Parker
3. Philadelphia - Joel Embiid | Philly takes Embiid despite injury concerns and does everything they can to try and swap him for Wiggins
4. Orlando - Dante Exum | Orlando is thrilled this guy is still there, as he's the best fit for them.
5. Utah - Julius Randle | This selection signifies them moving Favors to C full-time and giving up on Kanter
6. Boston - Noah Vonleh | The Celtics jump on the best available talent
7. LA Lakers - Marcus Smart | This has felt like it's been in the cards for a long time - LA finally gets a good PG (sorry Nash)
8. Sacramento - Aaron Gordon | Gordon has a lot of potential and it would be SO Sacramento to take another PF
9. Charlotte - Nik Stauskas | They need shooting - Stauskas provides it.
10. Philadelphia - Dario Saric | He'll play in Europe for a couple years, but Philly will spend those years tanking anyway.
11. Denver - Gary Harris | SG is a major position of need for the Nugs
12. Orlando - Rodney Hood | Already having taken a PG earlier in the draft, Orlando selects Rodney Hood, with intent to deal Afflalo and make Harris a full-time PF
13. Minnesota - Doug McDermott | McDermott is the kind of "win-now" player who appeals to a team desperately trying to nab the 8 seed
14. Phoenix - Zach LaVine | LaVine is an excellent insurance policy in case they can't afford to keep Eric Bledsoe

[NovU]

So #1 pick is Canadien kid once again 2 seasons in a row and 2 out of top 5 draft will be non-american. No wonder international teams like Spurs thrive in today's league while all americants Heat team are soaring.

[Kevin]

Added a poll

[Kevin]

A great read for deciding who is much more better.
Wiggins vs Parker, The Ultimate Comparison

[benji]

1. Andrew Wiggins, Kansas
Tobias Harris (98.0), Luol Deng (97.8), Maurice Harkless (97.7), Quincy Miller (97.2)

There's more star power, including Carmelo Anthony, lower in Wiggins' top 10 comps. However, Wiggins being similar to so many players is in itself an indication he's not a unique prospect. Paul George, the most popular subjective comparison for Wiggins, was slightly too old to qualify for Wiggins' list after his sophomore season but had a score of just 90.0 anyway, in large part because of his superior steal rate.

2. Jabari Parker, Duke
Carmelo Anthony (96.7), Luol Deng (95.7), Michael Beasley (95.0), Kevin Durant (95.0)

Ammo here for the Parker-Anthony comparisons. The nine players most similar to Parker were all lottery picks, including four that went either first or second.

4. Joel Embiid, Kansas
Patrick O'Bryant (96.1), Sean Williams (95.7), Daniel Orton (93.7), Robin Lopez (93.2)

Few low-post scorers of Embiid's ability have entered the league in the period covered by my database. Layne Vashro's similarity model that looks at a longer span comes up with Patrick Ewing and Hakeem Olajuwon among Embiid's comps

5. Noah Vonleh, Indiana
Chris Bosh (97.7), Derrick Favors (97.5), Spencer Hawes (95.0), Kosta Koufos (93.8)

When I saw Vonleh play in person, I immediately thought of Bosh, so it was encouraging to see the similarity model come to the same conclusion. Favors is another one-and-done post player with more potential than he demonstrated in college.

8. Julius Randle, Kentucky
Al-Farouq Aminu (96.3), Spencer Hawes (96.2), J.J. Hickson (96.0), Brandon Bass (95.3)

Removing age, Randle's second-best comparison is an interesting one: David Lee (97.6). Alas, Zach Randolph predates my database.

13. Elfrid Payton, Louisiana Lafayette
T.J. Ford (95.3), Rajon Rondo (93.9), Darius Morris (93.4), John Wall (91.5)

While Payton's projection is unimpressive, his similarity scores are much more hopeful. Other point guards with high steal, block and rebound rates in college have succeeded as pros despite their shooting woes.


16. Tyler Ennis, Syracuse
Chris Paul (95.1), Rajon Rondo (93.8), Russell Westbrook (92.6), T.J. Ford (92.4)

As I explained in my discussion of Ennis with Chad Ford, point guards with high assist and steal rates and low turnover rates excel in the NBA. Whether Ennis really belongs in that group depends on how much stock you place in a steal rate compiled at the top of Syracuse's 2-3 zone.

Vashro's system he mentions: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc ... _web#gid=5

[Andrew]

Added a poll

I'll vote no, since I made a somewhat bold prediction of him really sliding down the Draft board, but it probably could still happen.