By Brandon Niles
With the finals completed, NBA fans look to free agency and the draft for hope that their teams will compete next season. It’s one of my favorite events of the year, and during the draft, even fans of the worst teams are able to find hope for the future. With the 2011 NBA draft in the books, it’s time to take a look at the best and the worst of draft night.
WINNERS
Cleveland – This is a weak draft, but
the top pick, point guard Kyrie Irving
from Duke, is as close to a sure thing
as you can get this year. The addition
of Irving gives them a young,
talented player to build around and to
re-energize their fan base. As a bonus,
they also drafted
Texas power forward
Tristan Thompson
fourth overall.
Thompson has the
potential to develop
into a great player
and should team up
well with Irving.
Cavs fans should be
happy.
Charlotte – The
Bobcats are in
rebuilding mode,
shedding salaries and trying to accumulate
young talent to develop.
With that in mind, they made a trade
that sent aging Stephen Jackson to
Milwaukee for Corey Maggette and
the 19th pick for the seventh. The
Bobcats already had the ninth pick,
and with their two top-ten choices,
they grabbed Bismack Biyombo,
power forward from Congo, and
guard Kemba Walker from UConn.
Biyombo has a rare blend of athleticism
and ability, while Walker brings
a winning attitude and the ability to
hit big shots.
Portland – Portland came into the
draft needing a long-term solution
at point guard and some frontcourt
depth. They drafted Duke guard
Nolan Smith to add some backcourt
depth and outside shooting, but most
notably they traded aging but reliable
point guard Andre Miller to Denver
for young and talented Raymond
Felton. Felton has the ability to be the
future in Portland. This trade allowed
the Trail Blazers to come out of the
draft well after addressing one of
their two biggest needs.
LOSERS
Minnesota – As usual, the Timberwolves
made questionable moves
during the draft. With the second
pick, they selected the second-best
player in forward Derrick Williams
from Arizona. However, the forward
position is arguably the strongest on
their team and they should’ve traded
that pick for something else. Minnesota’s
failure to add a center or a
reliable scorer at the shooting guard
position makes them a loser in this
draft, despite the addition of Williams.
Toronto – Needing help in the
backcourt, the Raptors chose instead
to take a developmental big man in
Jonas Valanciunas from Lithuania
with the fifth pick. While talented,
he has contract issues and may not be
available next year. Meanwhile, they
let Kentucky point guard Brandon
Knight slide past them. Knight
would’ve instantly upgraded the
Toronto backcourt. Toronto failed to
address any needs, while rolling the
dice on an international player with
contract issues.
Golden State – The Warriors chose
to grab shooting guard Klay Thompson
from Washington State 11th
overall. Thompson isn’t a bad choice,
but the Warriors badly need reliable
players at the forward positions and
instead went with a guard. The team
has a loaded backcourt, and they
passed on available forwards like
Kawhi Leonard and Marcus Morris.
While I do like the acquisition of center
Jeremy Tyler in the second round,
Golden State didn’t get as much as
they could’ve out of this draft.
Brandon Niles has done online freelance
writing since 2007. A Communication
Studies graduate student
at the University of North Carolina
Greensboro, Niles is also an avid Miami
Dolphins fan, which has led to his
becoming an avid Scotch whisky fan
over the past decade. He’d love to visit
Montana one day.
